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‘US soldier suicides climb in 2005’

WASHINGTON: The US Army said 83 soldiers committed suicide last year, more than a quarter of them while deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Ten soldiers took their own life in the first three months of this year, the army said.

With 83 deaths in 2005, the suicide rate for active duty soldiers was 1.29 per 10,000 persons, up from 1.10 per 10,000 the year before and the 25-year average of 1.24 per 10,000, the army said.

The rate for civilians from the same demographic group was 1.98 per 10,000 persons, the army said.

Of last year’s suicides, 25 were by soldiers deployed for operations in Iraq or Afghanistan.

“We are keenly aware of the stresses facing our soldiers both on deployment and at home station,” the army said in a statement.

It said the army has instituted numerous programmes to identify soldiers at risk of suicide and to provide mental health care during deployments.

“Our goal is to provide the men and women who wear the army uniform the best available support to help them overcome the stresses that military service entails,” it said. In 2004, 67 soldiers on active duty committed suicide, 14 of them while deployed on operations in Iraq or Afghanistan. In 2003, the number was 76 soldiers, 25 while deployed on those operations. afp

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