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WASHINGTON (AP) - The Pentagon for the first time will require military bases worldwide to offer emergency contraception or the so-called morning-after pill, a military spokeswoman said Thursday. The decision follows a recommendation by an independent panel of doctors and pharmacists in November, said Defense Department spokeswoman Cynthia Smith. The panel determined that emergency contraception should be added to the military's list of medications that must be stocked at each military facility.

At 90, Anna Monkiewicz has a lifetime of stories and memories. The ones about flying start here. "My father had driven us over to see the planes take off and land" in Framingham, which, by the mid-1930s had two airfields: one at the Musterfield, used primarily for military planes, one for charter planes and flying lessons on Western Avenue near the Sherborn line. When she was a girl, there was also a small airfield in Natick, off Rte. 9, near the Wellesley line, the former Anna Flynn recalled.

SEATTLE — They were mavericks of their day, taking to the skies when the nation was at war and most women were at home caring for families. At a ceremony this spring, 11 Washington state women will join the 200-some surviving Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) in receiving Congressional Gold Medals for service during World War II. Sixteen more medals will be given to local WASPs posthumously. Congressional Gold Medals have been awarded nearly 150 times since the nation was born in 1776. The women join polio-vaccine inventor Dr. Jonas Salk and poet Robert Frost, as well as two other...

Women could soon be allowed to serve on Royal Navy submarines for the first time. Senior naval figures have opposed allowing women on subs due to the cramped conditions on board and the dangers posed by fumes inside the vessels to a foetus if a woman is pregnant. But a review of the ban was ordered last year following pressure from Labour figures keen to introduce full equal opportunities for women in the Armed Forces. The Royal Navy's new Astute attack submarines could easily be adapted to accommodate women and the Ministry of Defence has said that in the design...

1st Lt. Marjana Mair is confirmed as a Catholic at Tigris River Chapel in a ceremony presided over by Chaplain Maj. Tyson Wood. You could call it something of a religious trifecta for Marjana Mair. The soldier from Albany was among seven service members with the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade who just six days before Christmas were confirmed as Catholics while serving in Iraq. 1st Lt. Mair was also baptized and received her first communion.She was a Muslim for many years but wanted to become Catholic after studying the faith."I grew up (Muslim) for 18 years, but when I...

Early last month, Army Maj. Gen. Tony Cucolo (left) issued General Order #1 as a means of informing those assigned to his Multi-National Division North (a.k.a., "Task Force Marne") that becoming pregnant -- or assisting in the effort -- is one of several types of conduct deemed "prejudicial to the maintenance of good order and discipline" among members of the 22,000-strong task force headquartered in Tikrit, Iraq. In fact, it ranks alongside alcohol, drugs, guns and similar vices on the general's list of prohibited activities.

An Army general in Iraq backed away from his threat today to court martial female soldiers who get pregnant. "I see absolutely no circumstance where I would punish a female soldier by court martial for a violation ... none," Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo III wrote to ABC News in an exclusive statement. " I fully intend to handle these cases through lesser disciplinary action." Cucolo triggered debate, some of it angry, when his Nov. 4 policy forbidding pregnancy among his soldiers became public recently. His policy statement said violation of the rule could be punishable by court martial, and that...

Nobody wants to buy them a beer. Even near military bases, female veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan aren't often offered a drink on the house as a welcome home. More than 230,000 American women have fought in those recent wars and at least 120 have died doing so, yet the public still doesn't completely understand their contributions on the modern battlefield. For some, it's a lonely transition as they struggle to find their place.

On a crisp fall day in a cemetery in Queens, a Marine Corps honor guard blew taps over the country's oldest female Marine. Sgt. Miriam Cohen did not die jumping on a hand grenade, or storming the beaches of Normandy or battling the Japanese on Iwo Jima. Most appropriately, she died on Veteran's Day, one day after the 234th birthday of the United States Marines Corps. Cohen lived nearly half as long: She would have been 102 on Dec. 13. When World War II threatened civilization, this beautiful, gutsy Brooklyn gal answered the call of a bugle, just like the...

The Indian Air Force does not plan to train women to be fighter pilots. Neighboring Pakistan is not much better, even though it has seven female fighter pilots. They fly F-7s, a Chinese version of the Russian MiG-21. None have been in combat yet, despite the heavy use of jet fighter-bombers in nearly a year of fighting in the tribal territories. There, the more modern F-16s are doing most of the bombing of Taliban targets. The Indian air force leaders believe that it costs so much (over $2 million) to train a fighter pilot, that they air force needs 10-15...

The U.S. Army is dealing with an emotional and complicated case involving an Oakland woman. She's a single mother, scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan, even though she has no one to care for her 11-month-old baby. The woman is a 21-years-old single mom, who was almost on her way to Afghanistan. However, she is not the only one. A report released last month says 30,000 single mothers have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 9/11. For now 11-month-old Kamani Hutchinson is being cared for by his grandmother, Angelique Hughes of Oakland. A few days ago she flew to...

I've been asked by many to repost this for Veteran's Day. This is what I have so far. Happy Veterans day to vets and active duty military. We love you and are praying for you every day! God Bless You! Photos of my soldier in Iraq, enjoy...... 6-10-05 As many of you know, my daughter is in Iraq. Here's a photo essay detailing some of her activities there. I hope you all enjoy...... My daughter, left, and her Iraqi roommate before they left for Iraq. They are in the same platoon. A convoy... A baby goat... Nora, her 10 year...

...The top commander at Fort Hood is crediting a civilian police officer for stopping the shooting rampage that killed 13 people at the Texas post. Lt. Gen. Bob Cone also hailed a young Army nutritionist who helped wounded victims. Both women heroically intervened despite being shot. Cone said Friday that Fort Hood police Sgt. Kimberly Munley and her partner responded within three minutes of reported gunfire Thursday afternoon. Cone said Munley shot the gunman four times despite being shot herself. Officials said Munley was in stable condition. Cone said, "It was an amazing and an aggressive performance by this police...

A 21-year-old pregnant soldier who was due to come home within weeks is the second Chicago-area victim from the shooting at Fort Hood. Francesca Velez had just returned from a tour of duty in Iraq and was due to be temporarily released from the military on maternity leave, according to her family and friends.

A fresh tragedy added to the horror of the Fort Hood massacre Friday when it was revealed that one of the victims was a pregnant soldier. Francheska Velez, who returned to the U.S. just three days earlier from a foreign posting, was filling out paperwork when a gunman hollered "Allahu Akbar!" and embarked on a bloody rampage that left her and a dozen others dead. A 21-year-old Chicagoan, Velez was six-weeks pregnant when she was cut down on Thursday, FOX Chicago News reported. Velez was a sitting duck when the accused gunman, Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, yelled "God is...

The image of young women in a hot , dusty combat zone toting automatic weapons is still startling to some. But right now there are 10,000 women serving in Iraq, more than 4,000 in Aghanistan. They have been fighting and dying next to their male comrades since the wars began. "I can't help but think most Americans think women aren't in combat," says Specialist Ashley Pullen who was awarded a Bronze Star for valor in 2005 for her heroic action in Iraq where she served with a military police unit. "We're here and we're right up with the guys." Technically...

<p>This photograph from Afghanistan recently made rounds on the Facebook and e-mail accounts of folks whose work centers on military women's issues.</p> <p>The image itself didn't surprise them. It showed four Marines resting at a makeshift patrol base, their guns and helmets propped up against the familiar dusty backdrop of an Asian battlefield. Two of the Marines seemed to be snacking. One picked at her foot.</p>

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said on Thursday that women would soon serve on submarines reversing a long time ban by the Navy. The Department of Defense : Appearing on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” Mabus signaled that the Navy is moving closer to allowing coed personnel on submarines.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 7, 2009 – Navy Secretary Ray Mabus yesterday said women soon will serve on submarines, suggesting a reversal of the long-standing ban by the Navy. Appearing on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” Mabus signaled that the Navy is moving closer to allowing coed personnel on submarines. “It will take a little while because you’ve got to interview people and you’ve got to be nuclear trained,” he said, referring to prerequisite steps before a sailor is assigned to a submarine. Officials previously have cited a lack of privacy and the cost of reconfiguring subs as obstacles...

To day this day it stands true that there are no women in the Navy SEALs. This has been debated by many “equal rights” groups who claim that this is a sexist law. However, there has never been a woman who could pass the strenuous physical aspects of Navy SEAL training. In fact, there has never been a woman who has qualified to even be considered to enter BUD/S Training. Though this is true of the United States Navy, it’s not true where film is concerned. Specifically for the 1997 Ridley Scott film G.I. Jane, wherein, Demi Moore plays a...