In November, a former Special Forces team leader with whom I had served in Afghanistan sent me an article announcing another milestone for women in the military. For the first time, a female soldier had passed Special Forces Assessment and Selection, a grueling preliminary step to becoming a Green Beret. The Green Berets’ mission was to reduce the influence of the Taliban by improving local development, security and governance. Knowing this, they requested a Cultural Support Team, a small all-female unit trained to engage Afghan women and children. I led the Cultural Support Team, which consisted of myself; Leigh Murchison, an Army master sergeant; and a female interpreter.

Source: New York Times February 05, 2019 09:56 UTC