The Life Of A Female Marine In Afghanistan

For Female Marines, Tea Comes With Bullets -- New York Times

MARJA, Afghanistan — They expected tea, not firefights.

But the three female Marines and their patrol were shot at late on a recent day, when a burst of Kalashnikov rifle fire came from a nearby compound. The group hit the ground, crawled into a ditch and aimed its guns across the fields of cotton and corn.

In their sights they could see the source of the blast: an Afghan man who had shot aimlessly from behind a mud wall, shielded by a half-dozen children. The women held their fire with the rest of the patrol so as not to hit a child, waited for the all-clear, then headed back to the base, survivors of yet another encounter with the enemy.

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My Comment: In short .... it is not pretty. But when is operating in a war zone ever a piece of cake.

The ultimate outcome from this deployment will be more female marines (and from other services) involved in war zones .... they are invaluable in gaining intelligence from other Afghan women who may provide information that male soldiers would not be able to obtain.