Vietnam’s female spies who helped change the war

In this picture taken on January 17, 2018, Nguyen Thi Hoa, who was a member of the Perfume River squad - a top secret female combat unit formed in 1967, shows a photograph of herself taken in 1968 during an interview with AFP in the central city of Hue. -AFP

HUE: By day Nguyen Thi Hoa sold conical hats on the streets of Hue in southern Vietnam, at night she funnelled secrets to Communist army handlers who were poised to launch an audacious assault on the city that would reshape the Vietnam War.

Hoa was part of the Perfume River squad, a top secret female combat unit formed in 1967 and bound by the communist propaganda slogan: “When the enemy comes to your home, even the women should fight”.