'Israeli' soldier commits suicide, raising toll to 7 in July

Roya News

3 days ago

An 'Israeli' tank crewman committed suicide in his home in Netanya, central 'Israel', after recently serving a tour in Gaza as a reserve soldier, as reported by Haaretz.
Roi Wasserstein, 24 years old, served for about 300 days across multiple campaigns, most recently in Gaza as a member of the 'Israeli' military 401st Armored Brigade.
According to reports, Wasserstein took his own life due to the severe psychological toll he incurred from the war.
During his service in the 401st Armored Brigade, he was tasked with evacuating wounded and killed soldiers. 'Wasserstein was deeply affected by the horrors he witnessed on the battlefield,' his mother said, according to 'The Times of Israel'.
The 'Israeli' military said first it will not recognize him as a 'fallen soldier', as he was not in active duty at the time of his suicide.
It later backtracked with the chief of staff Eyal Zamir saying the military will not reassess how they classify such deaths.
Since the beginning of July, seven 'Israeli' soldiers have died by suicide. Three were active-duty combat soldiers, one was serving in the reserves at the time, and the remaining three had completed extended reserve service during the war before taking their own lives – according to a recent tally by Haaretz.