Women in Combat

In January 2005, during an interview with the Washington Times on the war in Iraq and Army transformation, President Bush stated: "There's no change of policy as far as I'm concerned. No women in combat."1 Technically, the policy has not changed, but in reality, the nation's policy has not survived contact with the enemy. As Commander in Chief, the President has engaged military power in the war against terrorism on a global scale and the counterinsurgency in Iraq has engulfed both men and women in combat. Operations ENDURING FREEDOM (Afghanistan) and IRAQI FREEDOM (Iraq) are the first major combat operations since hundreds of thousands of new positions in the military were opened to women in the 1990s. Women deployed and fought as fighter, bomber, attack, and helicopter pilots in all the services, in ground combat support positions, and aboard combat and support Navy and Coast Guard vessels. According to the Department of Defense, (DoD) 10,100 women were deployed to Iraq in May 2006, and 1,900 women were deployed to Afghanistan, constituting 8 percent of the total force.2 In total, over 155,000 women have served in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2002.