JERUSALEM, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Israel's army said on Thursday that the first training program for female tank commanders had been completed.
Four female soldiers finished the program, the army said in a statement, adding that they will attend Thursday the concluding ceremony for the Armored Corps Tank Commander's Course.
The four underwent 16 weeks of training, which were nearly identical to the training of male combat soldiers. "The course included fire, navigation, urban warfare training, tank commander exams and more," the army said.
"The purpose of this pilot program was to examine whether and how women can be integrated as combat tank commanders in the Armored Corps within the Border Defense Array," the statement read.
"The pilot integration program ... ended successfully," the army said, without elaborating on whether additional programs will be opened. The results of the program will be presented within the next few weeks to the military's commanders who will decide how to integrate the new graduates.
One of the future tank commanders, Charlotte Davivowitcz-Peled, 20-year-old from Tel Aviv, said in the statement that she believes the army "should give greater responsibility to women in all fields, even though they are physically different from men."
She moved from Britain to Israel two years ago. "My motivation is high because I moved to Israel in order to serve in the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and I chose to be a combat soldier," she said.
