Female soldiers talk about life at war

It is almost dark at the British military base in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan.

Fine grains of sand are swirling in the cool breeze.

A group of female soldiers are heading back to their pod after a heavy dinner consisting of beef and peas.

It is proper army grub here - and there's no excuse for going hungry.

They giggle over a remark about an Officer as they unzip the tent's door.

'All given the same choices'

Inside is what you might expect from women in their early twenties: bright pink duvets, big furry toys, and of course, pictures of buff naked men plastered on the walls.

Signaller Gemma Ferguson is 24-years-old. She's been in Afghanistan for three months and thinks being a woman in the army is no joke.

"It's quite difficult out here being a girl," she says. "You lose your girliness as such. As a woman in the army, we're all given the same choices and we all have the same treatment as men and we're not expected to perform in a different manner to males."

In the British army, nearly 70% of jobs are open to both sexes. Women can do almost exactly the same as men apart from officially serve on the frontline, so they're barred from tank regiments and the infantry.

Britain's take on it is they're not as physically strong as males and therefore, putting them on the frontline would result in more casualties.

But other countries like France, Switzerland, and Germany disagree and allow their women to take on active combat roles which are mainly about fighting on the ground.

Corporal Daniel Macci is a nurse in the emergency ward at the UK base Camp Bastion in Southern Helmand.

She says: "If a woman is able to do the same job as a man and able to carry the same weights and is strong enough to do that job, well good for her. But I know full well that I wouldn't be able to carry the weights and do the same job. So I'm happy to look after them when they get back if they need it."

Women at Camp Bastion stroll around the base in their camouflage gear.

'It can be quite intimidating'

The sun is beaming down and the breeze from the armoured vehicles passing by is welcome.

Most of the females have their hair tied up in a bun. For many, dressing the same each day is dull.

Private Rachel Pritchard is 21-years-old. She recently began wearing eyeliner and blusher to make herself feel better.

She told Newsbeat: "Being a female, being out in Afghanistan with the guys, sometimes it can be quite intimidating because you go to the cook house and they all just stare at you. But they're men and you're women and that’s just how it is out here."

The government's supposed to be looking at whether women should be allowed combat roles as part of a review. But it's not clear how realistic a change would be.

The MoD wouldn't comment, but said they would once the review's finished.

Private Pritchard thinks the rules shouldn't change.

She said, "I personally think women shouldn't be allowed on the front line to fight. If a woman was to go down, it’s a man prerogative to look after her and protect her. So if a woman was to go down it would put two people at risk, and not just the one person."

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