It's no great secret that in 1944/45 plenty (unquantifiable) of Germans surrendered on the Western Front and whilst being led behind the lines to be taken as a PoW were shot by their captor as it was quicker and easier. After all, whilst you're treating your prisoner nicely, you're not there to defend your mates.
Of course, as the Russians hadn't signed the Geneva Convention, Hitler felt he was correct in ignoring it when taking (or not) or looking after (or not) Russian prisoners. The Taliban (as I understand it) have not signed it either.
And this isn't to excuse it, or justify it. But it seems wrong to judge the killing of a dying man in the same way as the killing of a granny in order to take her purse. I'm just glad that I don't have to apply this law; it seems doubtful that there can be any joy in so doing.
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