scorched earth

A scorched-earth policy is a military strategy of destroying everything that allows an enemy to be able to fight a war, including water, food, humans, animals, plants and any kind of tools and infrastructure. Its use is possible by a retreating army to leave nothing of value to the attacking force or by an advancing army to fight against unconventional warfare. Scorched earth against non-combatants has been banned under the 1977 Geneva Conventions. Origin of the term The term was found in English in a 1937 report on the Second Sino-Japanese War. Retreating Chinese burned crops and destroyed infrastructure including cities to sabotage the logistics of the advancing Japanese forces. Military theory Clausewitz wrote in Principles of War: