Shocking Toll: Can the Pentagon Reduce Suicides Among US Soldiers and Their Families?

Murad Jandali | a year ago

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An independent US commission recommended tightening the rules for US Army soldiers’ possession of personal weapons in military barracks.

The Pentagon had formed this committee in 2022 to study ways to reduce suicides, which are constantly rising in the ranks of the US troops.

Last year, more than 500 military personnel and 200 family members committed suicide, the vast majority with firearms, according to the Pentagon.

Suicide rates among US soldiers began to become common and increased during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and reached their highest rates in 2012, exceeding the number of those killed in battle.

It is noteworthy that shooting incidents abound in the United States, whose constitution guarantees citizens the right to possess firearms.

Attempts to regulate the possession of these weapons and demands for stricter control over their sales collide with strong rejection, especially by the Conservative Party.

 

Military Suicides

The Associated Press reported last week that an independent commission commissioned by the Pentagon to investigate why dozens of US military personnel ended their lives made more than a hundred recommendations aimed at curbing the phenomenon, including tightening rules for soldiers’ possession of personal firearms in the barracks.

In its report, which it published on February 24, 2023, the committee formed by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in March last year noted that “about 66% of all active-duty military suicides, and more than 70% of those by National Guard and Reserve members, are done with firearms.”

It said limiting access to guns and firearms, especially in times of extreme distress, could prevent some deaths and reduce military deaths.

Among the 127 recommendations that came in the committee’s report is that the army requires its personnel who live in military housing to register all their personal firearms in special records and keep them in places that are closed with locks.

The committee also recommended that troops be allowed to purchase personal firearms from barracks and military bases only after passing a mandatory waiting period of 7 days for the firearm and 4 days for the ammunition.

The committee stated that in order for the Pentagon to adopt these recommendations, it must unify the rules that currently govern the possession of personal firearms by its members, which differ from one state to another.

According to reports, stores on US military bases sold more than 113,000 firearms in 2021.

The committee also said the Pentagon needs to improve and update suicide prevention training and take steps to address risk factors that increase the number of suicides.

The report indicated that the military infrastructure and other systems did not keep pace with changes in technology, adding that all this increases tension and the risk of suicide.

The committee also concluded that alcohol abuse and financial problems were often linked to suicide.

As a result, the administration recommended reforming the payment systems to avoid delays and to address excessive alcohol use.

The commission’s report reflects growing concerns about suicides plaguing the US military, despite more than a decade of programs and other efforts to prevent them, and prompts greater intervention by commanders, friends, and family members.

However, gun safety and control measures are likely to encounter resistance, particularly in Congress, where such legislation has struggled in recent years.

In its report, the committee said that the complex and rigid hierarchical structure of the US Department of Defense hinders its ability to effectively prevent suicides.

 

Alarming Report

On September 26, 2019, a report released by the US Department of Defense concluded that the suicide rate of duty troops had increased significantly over the past five years.

The annual report of the Pentagon indicated that the suicide rates of US soldiers during their service had increased dramatically. The rate increased from 18.5 suicides per 100,000 soldiers in 2013 to 24.8 suicides in 2018.

The report added that 541 soldiers committed suicide in 2018, adding that most of the suicides were with firearms. The report published for the first time suicide rates among members of military families. The suicide rate for military spouses was 9.1 per 100,000 for females and 29.4 per 100,000 for male spouses, according to Military.com.

It is noteworthy that the high suicide rates of soldiers in the ranks of the US army still raise the concerns of US officials about the repercussions of this matter on the future of the most powerful armies in the world. Suicide is currently the second leading cause of death in the US military.

The phenomenon of high suicide rates is not limited to only military service members but also extends to veterans.

On September 23, 2019, the Department of Veterans Affairs released an alarming report showing that at least 60,000 veterans died by suicide from 2008 to 2017.

The report noted that in 2017 more than 6,100 veterans died by suicide, an increase of 2% from 2016 and an overall increase of 6% since 2008.

The report found that firearms were the most frequently used among suicide bombers.

According to US reports, the suicide rate among military personnel was lower than that of age- and gender-matched civilians at first but then rose in the 10 years since the start of the Iraq war in 2003.

Then a wave of escalating concern began about the suicide rates in the military; soldiers participating in military operations were at the forefront of the risk of committing suicide.

The rate of soldiers attempting suicide or injuring themselves was 17.5 per 100,000 in 2006, while 2,100 soldiers also attempted suicide in 2007.

It is noteworthy that the number of deaths in US battles has decreased significantly since 2007, but the number of suicides of soldiers reached its peak in 2012.

The rise in suicide rates was evident when the US Department of Defense reported that the year 2009 was harsh, as a record number of suicides among US ground forces reached 160 cases.

By the beginning of 2012, there were also 154 suicides that occurred within 155 days among forces operating outside the United States, 50% of which occurred in Afghanistan.

According to reports, the numbers of suicides in the period following the Iraq war were alarming because the Pentagon was expecting lower numbers. However, these statistics included only serving soldiers in the US Army and did not include suicides among veterans.

In June 2021, a study conducted by a researcher at Brown University reported that many US Army soldiers committed suicide over the past years.

The study revealed that since the attacks of September 11, 2001, which paved the way for the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, 30,177 soldiers committed suicide during or after military service.

The study noted that the reasons that prompted US soldiers to commit suicide are many, including intense and arduous military training, stress, trauma, psychological pressure, the constant use of weapons, and the inability to adapt to civilian life.

It is noteworthy that the number of US soldiers who were killed in the war during the same period amounted to 7,057.

 

US Failure

Over the past years, the Pentagon has not provided any explanation for the reasons for the increase in suicides among US soldiers.

Nevertheless, a number of analysts believe that the reasons for the increase in suicide rates are complex and portend serious crises in the future.

Increased military operations, post-traumatic stress, drug abuse, and personal financial problems are among the causes cited by experts.

Statistics from the US Department of Defense also showed that sexual assaults, excessive alcohol use, and domestic violence were more frequent than serving soldiers.

According to the analysts, a number of psychological and social factors are associated with the risk of suicide, as individual stressors were the most common cause of suicide among military personnel, followed by problems related to workplace difficulties.

According to a 2008 RAND Corporation study, 300,000 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan currently suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression, and about 320,000 others suffer from traumatic brain injury or brain damage.

This majority is not helped by the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs, who are more interested in hiding unpleasant realities than in providing care.

The study accused the federal government of failing to care for veterans at its own risk, warning of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, which would have far-reaching and devastating consequences.

It is noteworthy that the sharp rise in suicide rates among US soldiers prompted CBS News in 2007 to try to count the numbers of these soldiers who committed suicide and shed light on their cause.

At that time, the channel revealed for the first time that the number of soldiers returning from service in the war field who committed suicide reached 6,256 soldiers, with an average of 120 cases every week, or 17 cases every day.

It announced that these numbers are not issued by the US Army, which only counts the number of soldiers who committed suicide during the performance of service only, confirming that the numbers I counted have been obtained from 45 states in the United States.

It pointed out that all these suicides were among young soldiers, who had fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and their ages ranged from 20 to 24 years.

The channel also indicated that suicide rates among soldiers returning from war are 2.5 to four times higher than rates among active service soldiers.