Young YPJ recruits cry and embrace a fellow soldier who they thought had been sent to the front line, near Derek City, Syria. The YPJ schedule is demanding and requires discipline - new soldiers in training get about 6 hours of sleep a night and wake up at 4 AM to begin exercising; afterwards, their day consists of a full schedule of drills and classroom lessons. Before joining the YPJ many of the girls had never participated in physical activity or sports before.

Erin Trieb / for NBC News