Having served with women in a combat zone and I disagree. If we fall into the trap of not being able to ‘bear to see them hurt’ then it is our own fault that we are weak. We shouldn’t twist things around and place the blame around onto the women who volunteered to put themselves in harms way.
There are a number of reasons why women should not be placed in combat. One of them, alluded to here, is that women are likely to be subject to “special” treatment by their potential captors.
This incident reminds me of the chicoms forcing down the P3 a few years back. I remember reading that the flight crew didn’t ditch because of concern for the women crew(persons)men on board.