World | women in the military Afghan Women Join Special Forces Controversial move helps with night raids, especially By Neal Colgrass Suggested by DarthWD56 Posted Feb 16, 2013 4:22 PM CST Copied In this Jan. 14 photo, a female member of Afghan special forces, right, stands guard during a training exercise on the outskirts of Kabul. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq) Afghanistan is training women to join its army's special forces and take part in nighttime raids of houses for the first time, the AP reports. Night raids are already a sensitive issue in Afghanistan, where many consider such breaches of privacy culturally offensive—but having male soldiers touch females is strictly taboo. So the newly trained female troops can corral the women and look for male insurgents hiding in women's clothing. While Afghanistan's security forces have included women for years, some women face disapproval from relatives when trying to join the special forces. Lena Abdali, 23—who dons a traditional headscarf beneath her helmet—says she also hides her new job from family and friends for their own security. Still, she considers the job her duty: "Women must show their bravery and power by carrying out this duty as men do," she says. Read These Next Her blood isn't compatible with anyone else's. New Fox star, 23, misses first day after car troubles. Man accused of killing his daughters might be dead. Fan who taunted Ketel Marte's mom has been banned by MLB. Report an error