"Crossing the threshold to active combat was an important psychological moment, " Dr Stelzenmueller said.

BBC: German army prepares for new global role

In its legal submissions, the US justice department argues that because Afghanistan is an active combat zone it is not possible to conduct rigorous inquiries into individual cases and that it would divert precious military resources at a crucial time.

BBC: Ex-detainees allege Bagram abuse

"Belmokhtar likely wants to show he is still engaged in active operations and he is not moving away from the fighting - especially at a time when other Jihadists are in active combat against French troops in Mali, " he said.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

We took months to adjust the organization, training, and support structures of our active combat forces, we experienced major problems with some aspects of the call up and training of our reserves, and we literally had to make thousands of modifications to our combat equipment, munitions, support equipment, and battle management and communications systems.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Section IV: Building a Two-MRC Force for the 21st Century

In addition to the IOC, which is expected to enroll several dozen more women, the Marine Corps will also conduct strength and other fitness evaluations, and assign some active-duty women to combat-related jobs previously held by men.

FORBES: Move up http://i.forbesimg.com t Move down

That changed Thursday when Defense Secretary Leon Panetta rescinded the 1994 Pentagon policy that bans women, who now make up about 14% of active-duty military personnel, from combat.

WSJ: Panetta to Open Combat Roles to Women

For instance, the Defense Business Board found last year that 40 percent of the 1.4 million active-duty military personnel in the joint force had never deployed for combat, and an additional 30 percent had only deployed once.

FORBES: Pentagon Should Cut Bloated Head Count, Not Weapons Programs

Women currently make up more than 14% of the 1.4 million active military personnel but were not allowed to serve in over 230, 000 combat positions, despite that they have increasingly served at the front lines.

FORBES: Will Allowing Women In Combat Roles Revolutionize Military Leadership?

Ah, but wait, by far the majority of those active service members will be male (women only just this past week being cleared for combat operations for example) so perhaps we should use the male suicide rate, not the population one?

FORBES: But There Isn't An Epidemic Of Suicide In The US Military

Instead, this new effort involves workers, suppliers and companies as active partners in efforts to improve child and maternal health, promote gender equality and empower women, combat disease, strengthen local communities and protect the environment wherever they do business.

FORBES: U.S. Companies Must Raise The Bar On Supply Chain Conditions