The Israeli army said Thursday that 28 soldiers had taken their own lives since the start of the war, marking the highest toll in 13 years and raising concerns about a potential mental health crisis in the army. The IDF noted that these are "suspected" suicides, as all cases remain under investigation to this day.
In a casualty report for the past two years, the IDF said it recorded 21 suicides in 2024, up from 17 the year before – including 10 that occurred before the October 7 attacks by Hamas militants that triggered the war.
The increase was most notable when compared to previous years, with 14 suspected suicides in 2022 and 11 in 2021.
More than half of suicide cases last year involved reservists, a figure attributed to the surge in the number of reservists called up since the war began 15 months ago.