Resistance (military)

In military terminology, resistance or organised resistance refers to the ability of a military unit to continue to oppose an attack. Resistance ends when a unit surrenders, when all members of unit are killed or captured, or when a unit disperses. The term is used in the phrase "organized resistance has ceased" to describe the end of a battle or campaign when no formal surrender occurs after a unit is defeated. The term also occurs in the phrase "pocket of resistance."

When a unit disperses, individuals who avoid capture may continue to resist the opposing force, e.g. by joining or forming a resistance movement, but this resistance is no longer "organized resistance" in the military sense.