Suicides Spike in US Army, To Surpass Last Year's Record

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Source: AFP

WASHINGTON — Suicides in the US Army are headed to a new record, with 140 suspected cases reported since the start of the year, a top general said on Tuesday.

The cause of the rising suicide rate remained unclear and varied from base to base, with about one-third of the suicides among soldiers who had not yet deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, General Peter Chiarelli, Army vice chief of staff, told reporters.

The number of suicides was already at last year's record level, Chiarelli said.

"We are almost certainly going to end the year higher than last year," he said.

As of Monday, the Army had registered 140 suspected cases among active duty soldiers and 71 suspected suicides by service members no longer on active duty, he said.

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