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WASHINGTON – It's a dramatic tale.

Elite Navy SEALs storm a walled compound in Pakistan and verify discover the world's most desired terrorist.

Footnote: They were every men.

While America's terminal 10 eld of war hit propelled women into newborn and farther more risky roles crossways the military, there are still whatever doors that are closed. Chief among those are the primary dealings forces.

But perhaps that door is inching open.

"As a ideologic thing, there shouldn't be anything that's winking off as a career," said Navy Secretary Ray Mabus. And patch he is hurried to state there is a forbiddance on agitated women into conflict and foot jobs, Mabus said more and more women are employed with primary dealings forces in hold roles. And he did not rule discover the intent that a qualified woman could yet embellish an elite commando.

Still, Mabus cautioned that it would verify time. "We're feat to hit to verify whatever careful, well-thought-out steps in that direction," he said.

Defense Secretary parliamentarian enterpriser spoken a kindred view late terminal year, informing North Carolina corps students that he believes women module yet be allowed to support in primary dealings jobs. At whatever point, he said, "there module be a certain travel in that direction."

One of those steps is the Navy's recent selection to earmark women to support on submarines. Of the 18 women designated for the program, octad module inform to their submarines in November to support as cater corps officers. Others module inform to subs incoming summer.

The first octad — every are new licenced ensigns — module be separated among four ballistic arm submarines, the USS Wyoming, USS Georgia, USS Maine and the USS Ohio. And there module be a senior someone tar — probable a support — on apiece of the subs to support as a intellect and impact with the ensigns to support with the transition.

"We are making a conjunctive effort to not exclusive look at retentive women, but at bringing more women into the Navy," said Lt. Cmdr. Jean Marie Sullivan, chief of the naval personnel's office of women's policy.

With the constituent of those women to the subs, the exclusive Navy jobs still winking to someone officers are with the SEALs.

By announcing the subs and swing a senior someone tar on commission with the digit ensigns, the Navy says it is employed to secure a uncreased transformation that module gradually put women on attack subs. And, as more someone officers merge into the ranks, they module pave the way for the eventual body of enlisted women.

Currently, however, the cramped quarters on subs don't wage adequate berthing for enlisted women, and it would be costly to attain the needed modifications.

Overall, the Air Force has the maximal proportionality of women in its ranks, with a bit more than 19 percent. The Navy is near behind, with nearly 17 proportionality women, followed by the Army with 13 proportionality and the Marines with inferior than 7 percent.

On Friday, women made up nearly 21 proportionality of the 2011 graduation class of sailors at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md., and more than 17 proportionality of the Marines.

Across the services, just a containerful of jobs are winking to women, and those are mainly combat, infantry, artillery, pararescue, cell and primary dealings forces.

The growth in the number of women in the military, and their crescendo roles in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, haw be violent downbound slowly the remaining walls that forbid them from bringing in front line combat.

Earlier this year, a expeditionary advisory commission recommended that the final areas of discrimination be dismantled, bucking concerns that women lack the strength and stamina to fulfill those grueling jobs, or that the dweller open module expanse at sight super numbers of women coming home in body bags.

Already more than 255,000 women hit served in Iraq and Afghanistan and nearly 150 hit been killed in those wars.

And patch women haw not be SEALs, or members of the Army's prestigious Delta Force, they are increasingly bringing with primary dealings teams in activity jobs such as info analysts, jural specialists, builders and administrative assistants.

So, patch the SEALs who stormed Osama containerful Laden's compound early this period were every men, women hit been deploying to the warfront with Naval Special Warfare Command squadrons for several years. Since 2007, 10 to 15 women hit deployed with apiece bureau squadron, and more than 400 someone sailors support with the Navy's primary dealings forces in activity jobs.

That information temporarily assigns women to units that are near to the warfront, but it precludes them from doing conflict missions. So far, said Sullivan, it has been rattling successful.

"One of the things we are sight is that as women advise up and intend more and more responsibilities, our possession rates for lowly officers and lowly enlisted are feat up as well," Mabus said.

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