text: The Wounded and Sick
  or captured, but must be respected and protected, provided their names and descriptions have been notified
  to the parties to the conflict ten days before the ships are employed (GWS Sea, art. 22). Military hospital
  ships are to have all exterior surfaces painted white with at least one large, dark red cross (or other protected
  medical symbol as in paragraph 4-30) on each side of the hull and on the horizontal surfaces and distinctively
  marked further as specified in Article 43 of GWS Sea. Military hospital ships, commissioned civilian hospital
  ships, and authorized neutral civilian hospital ships that meet the applicable requirements must be respected
  and protected and are exempt from capture (GWS Sea art. 24; DOD Law of War Manual, 7.12.4). Hospital
  ships are exempt from capture and any hospital ship in a port that falls into the hands of the enemy is
  authorized to leave the port and the religious, medical, and hospital personnel of the ship and its crew may
  not be captured during the time they are in the service of the hospital ship, whether or not there are wounded
  and sick on board (GWS Sea, arts. 29 and 36).
  4-28. As long as they have been provided with an official commission by a Party to the conflict and the
  proper certification from responsible authorities (see GWS Sea, art. 24), and their names and descriptions
  have been provided to parties to the conflict ten days before they are employed (GWS Sea, art. 22), small
  craft employed by a State or by the officially recognized lifeboat institutions for coastal rescue operations
  must be respected and protected, so far as operational requirements permit (GWS Sea, art. 27).
  4-29. The phrase “so far as operational requirements permit” acknowledges the risk to which small craft,
  because of their small size, are exposed when working in a combat environment. Their small size may
  increase the likelihood of misidentification by enemy or friendly forces, or it may not be feasible to avoid
  incidental harm to them. They act at their own risk during or after any engagement (GWS Sea, art. 30).
  Although small craft may be exposed to certain risks, if a party to a conflict has recognized the craft, it is
  prohibited from making a deliberate attack on them (GWS Sea, art. 27).
  4-30. Religious, medical, and hospital personnel under the GWS Sea who are retained to care for the
  wounded and sick at sea and are later retained to care for the wounded and sick on land are subject to GWS
  on landing (see GWS Sea, art. 37). Similarly, wounded and sick personnel put ashore who previously may
  have been engaged in the land-sea battle are subject to GWS once put ashore (see GWS Sea, art. 4).
  THE DISTINCTIVE EMBLEMS
  4-31. To serve as the visual expression of the protections accorded under the 1949 Geneva Conventions and
  Additional Protocol III, to medical and religious personnel, and medical units, facilities, transports, and
  equipment, four distinctive emblems have been established and recognized. As displayed in figure 4-1,
  they are 1) a Red Cross; 2) a Red Crescent; 3) a Red Crystal, and 4) a Red Lion and Sun (not currently
  in use) (GWS arts. 38-42; GWS Sea arts. 41-43; consider AP I, art. 18; AP I, Amended Annex I, arts. 3-4;
  AP II art. 12; and, AP III art. 2). A party may only use one emblem at a time. The chosen emblem will be
  displayed in red on a white background.
  Figure 4-1. The distinctive emblems