Opening doors to women in the military.
On Thursday, the Pentagon announced that it would open about 14,000 jobs to women by enabling them to take positions such as medics, intelligence officers, and military police at the battalion level. Women will still be barred from front-line combat.
(SOUNDBITE) (English)DEPUTY UNDER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR MILITARY PERSONNEL POLICY VEE PENROD SAYING :
"Opening these positions implements lessons from over a decade at war where women were proven exceptionally capable and indispensable to mission accomplishment."
The move is likely to rekindle the debate on women in combat.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY GEORGE LITTLE SAYING:
"As we make this announcement I'd like to stress that Secretary Panetta believes that this is the beginning, not the end, of a process. The services will continue to review positions and requirements to determine what additional positions may be opened to women. Our goals is to ensure that the mission is met with the best qualified and the most capable people regardless of gender."
There has been significant resistance in the United States to women serving in combat. Current Pentagon rules attempt to shield women from combat, but the distinction is often lost in a war zone.
Officials say 144 women in the U.S. military have been killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters.
