Army Will Cover Gender Reassignment Surgery for Former Analyst

Chelsea Manning, a transgender woman and former Army intelligence analyst, will receive gender transition surgery.

Manning was convicted of stealing and disseminating 750,000 pages of documents and videos to WikiLeaks.

The former U.S. Army soldier is serving a 35-year sentence at Fort Leavenworth, an all-male Army prison in eastern Kansas. Her lawyers said she was denied medical treatment for her "gender dysphoria."

After the government refused to provide the means for surgery, Manning attempted suicide in July. Manning then began a hunger strike on Sept. 9, demanding treatment and access to medically prescribed recommendations for her condition.

Tuesday, Manning found out that the military will provide the necessary means to begin gender reassignment surgery.

A new Department of Defense policy will lay out processes where service members may transition.

The policy says, "Service members with a diagnosis from a military medical provider indicating that gender transition is medically necessary will be provided medical care and treatment for the diagnosed medical condition."