Sister of fallen soldier criticizes support for veterans due to post-traumatic stress disorder – Israel News

Inbal Dagan said her brother, combat navigator Major Asaf Dagan, who recently ended his life in a forest near Atlit, criticized the government for its outdated and absurd policies towards traumatized war veterans in a Facebook eulogy for her brother and sister on Friday.

She included a letter he left for their mother in which he stated: “I want you to know, Mom, that I am no longer in pain. Now, mom, I have finally found peace… I am so tired, exhausted. Every day my pain and difficulties deepen as I see you fighting with the last of your strength… I don’t want you to have false hopes. I have no place in this world.”

Dagan described her brother’s struggle, saying: “My mother dedicated her life to trying to save Asaf… He had all the classic symptoms post-traumatic stress disorder“

She highlighted her mother’s tireless efforts, noting that her calls for Ministry of Defense and various other organizations remained “ignored.”

Asaf, who began his service as a paratrooper, was a combat navigator in Israeli Air Force and participated in the Second Lebanon War, participating in every military operation for 20 years. Despite his deteriorating mental health, his sister noted in a Facebook post that he continued to serve in the reserves in the weeks before his death.

Dagan emphasized: “Assaf is a clear case of a combat veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder… The most severe cases become isolated and fade away.”

War graves and criticism of the PTSD support system

In her post, Dagan also highlighted bureaucratic indifference, saying: “According to outdated Department of Defense protocols… Assaf should have ‘turned himself in’ and asked for help.”

She emphasized the “absurdity” of the system, noting: “Everyone knows that one of the characteristics of severely traumatized veterans is that they cannot ask for help.”

Assaf’s body is currently at the Rambam Medical Campus, Dagan wrote in her post. In his letter, he expressed his desire for his organs to be donated, which the family honored, she explained.

According to the report, Dagan’s family is calling for public support to ensure Assaf receives a military funeral and recognition, stressing: “The family will not allow this double injustice… we categorically refuse to bury him in any ceremony that is not a full military ceremony. »

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Dagan ended with the message: “Assaf, I miss you and love you. We won’t give up.”