then why are they holding scoped rifles for this picture?
The Night Witches were an all-female bomber regiment. They piloted very low and slow biplanes that German soldiers reckoned hardly made any sound save for a swish like a broom passing overhead... et voila.
The pic I posted is of female Soviet snipers. The pic caption claims they are from the 1st Belorussian Front, aka in Western parlance Army Group Center.
The star medal they all wear is the Order of Glory (below), the 3rd class medal is awarded for at least 10 kills. A bit less than 1 million of these were given out.
Scoring another 20 or so would qualify for the Order of Glory 2nd class, signified by a second similar star-shaped medal which some of these women seem to have. Less than 47,000 were awarded.
The round medal is possibly the Medal For Battle Merit, a common bravery award of which 5 million were given out.