A look at countries where women are in combat

From France’s Joan of Arc to female resistance fighters in World War II and the black-clad women warriors of the Viet Cong, history is filled with stories of women fighting alongside men.

In many modern armies, however, ground infantry combat is still largely a male preserve — either by regulation, practical issues such as physical requirements of living space or personal preference in volunteer forces.

But change is afoot. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, where supply troops, clerks and military police have ended up in battle regardless of gender, have blurred the distinction between combat and...