Kurdish women take up arms in Iraq against ISIS

, Aug 19: Hundreds of Iraqi Kurdish women have decided that enough is enough. Like devoted warriors, they have taken up arms to protect their community against the threat of the ISIS jihadists.

The women's group is known as the women peshmerga of the 2nd Battalion. It has 550 female fighters led by Col. Nahida Ahmad Rashid, says Barcroft report. They have undergone rigorous exercises in the scorching heat of Sulaymaniyah and are preparing themselves to fight the Islam terrorists who have been attacking towns in Kurdistan region. Peshmerga roughly translates to "Those who confront death".

"It's an honor to be part of a modern Muslim country that allows women to defend the homeland," said an unidentified mother who has been a soldier since the battalion's creation in 1996, as quoted by a New York Post report. "We enjoy the same treatment as male fighters do as required by law", she said.

Being a peshmarga is very difficult as the women have to take care of their families too. Even pregnant women have joined the group. "This is my duty, no matter if I am bearing a child or not," the four-months-pregnant woman said. "If I am called to the front lines, I will go", she said, as reported by NY Post.

Peshmarga has the support of the Kurdish population.

Oneindia News