Shir Mizrachi shows Efe, sitting in a Jerusalem park, a new tattoo on her right arm: it is the name of her brother Eliran, an Israeli army reservist who He served for six months in the Gaza war before committing suicide in June..
“He couldn’t take it anymore. He did it the same day he was ordered to return to combat,” said the 28-year-old Israeli, whose brother, diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) shortly after he left the country, was still receiving psychiatric treatment in the enclave after being injured.
Like Mizrachi, at least ten other Israeli soldiers have committed suicide since October 7; according to figures from an investigation by the minority, left-wing Israeli newspaper, Haaretzgiven that There is no official data on this subject..
“My brother left Gaza on doctors’ orders, because of a knee injury, but his mind never left there,” he explains. It was at this time, he says, far from the fighting and bombing, that his mental health problems began, accompanied by bouts of insomnia, tantrums and an inability to tear himself away from his mobile phone on which he watched videos from Gaza.
“The army sent him to a psychiatric ward after he left Gaza, but we didn’t really know what it means to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. And I think neither our government nor the army knows how to deal with this problem,” which remains taboo in Israel, he laments.
From the army, an official from the Ministry of Health explains, in a conversation with Efe, that Since the start of the war, resources allocated to mental health have increased.
“We have mental health specialists in virtually all of our combat units. We recognize that many of our soldiers have suffered from mental health issues, particularly as a result of October 7,” he said, adding that there will be many more as the war drags on.
According to the Israeli official, soldiers of all categories and ages suffering from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have passed through the army’s mental health services.
Eliran’s sister Shir Mizrachi poses in a Jerusalem park.
EFE
“We try to explain to them that it is normal for them to suffer from some type of mental disorder after the fight. Many come of their own free will, because today there is more awareness, but Many people who commit suicide do not always seek help.“, he emphasizes.
And he emphasizes that, in the case of soldiers who present these pathologies, the Army tries to reintegrate them into its ranks as quickly as possible: “If they do not return, these problems can get worse.”
That’s what happened with Eliran, who received a call a few days after receiving the diagnosis.
“My brother was suffering a lot and it is clear that the treatment was not enough. He committed suicide with a weapon that he had bought outside the months of his service,” says his sister, who claims that before the war there were stricter rules for obtaining weapons.
On the contrary, some doctors consider that their rapid reintegration could be counterproductive both for them and for their colleagues, as the professor has already warned. Yair Bar-Haimdirector of the clinic at the National Post-Trauma Center at Tel Aviv University, in his annual report The Future of Israel.
“These soldiers run the risk of worsening their psychological condition, and since they may not be in full combat shape, they also put their comrades in danger,” said Bar-Haim, who acknowledged that Eliran Mizrachi’s case was not the only one.
However, his case has been one of the most high-profile since his family denounced that the Israeli state refused to recognize him as a “fallen soldier” since his death occurred outside of his duties.
“My family and I we are very disappointed with our country“I know the army and its rules… but my brother gave his life for this war and became number one after his death,” Shir complains. Media pressure finally managed to reverse the decision.
And despite the pain of losing her brother, Shir wants to think that it has at least served to place “the invisible blood” that floods the bowels of the army at the center of the debate.
“I am convinced that all our soldiers suffer from mental health problems. We need to talk about it more. It is, as my mother says, an invisible blood (that) is there but cannot be seen,” she concludes.
