Report says 44% of Israeli youth suffer from depression, 20% have suicidal tendencies

A new report has revealed that 44% of Israeli youth deal with constant anxiety and depression, while 20% showed tendencies to take their own lives.

The report, published by Hebrew-language media on Tuesday, covers the year 2022 and was conducted by ELEM, a nonprofit watchdog monitoring at-risk youth.

“They shared feelings of despair, exhaustion, disconnection, and lack of motivation when at home, school, parks, and social media,” the report said, adding that some 19% reported receiving emotional therapy from psychologists, psychiatrists, and other therapists.

“The hardships that youth faced and deepened during the COVID pandemic haven’t lessened,” stated the report by ELEM, which was presented to President Isaac Herzog on Tuesday.

According to the report, 18% of Israeli youth also reported experiencing sexual abuse, while 20% said they experienced domestic violence, some of which had been going on for years.

The report further said that violence among Israeli youths has been intensifying in recent years. It noted that 26% of the youth reported experiencing violence outside their homes, including severe bullying.

The sharp increase in tendencies among Israeli settlers to commit suicide has raised the alarm among Israeli authorities and their Western supporters.

Tali Erez, ELEM’s CEO, said, “We need to wake up. Our children, especially those at risk who lack a family, support system, or anyone to look after them, are dealing with the consequences of increasingly dangerous phenomena.”

Earlier, Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that suicide among Israeli teenagers and youth aged between 15-24 years old has increased by 75%.

The number of suicides among this age group has significantly increased between 2016 and 2020, it added.

Yedioth Ahronoth noted that there is an alarming increase in suicide cases among Israeli troops as well, adding that 14 soldiers took their own lives in 2022, which is the highest figure in the last five years.

Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli military Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi has already described the soaring increase in suicide cases among Israeli troops as a “dangerous and daunting” challenge for the regime’s armed forces.

Halevi has ordered more efforts by relevant authorities to deal with the issue.