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    • Dead soldier’s sister criticizes government support for PTSD for veterans – Israel News
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    Dead soldier’s sister criticizes government support for PTSD for veterans – Israel News

    Online Niel Posted on

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Major Asaf Dagan, who recently ended his life in a forest near Atlit, criticized the government on Friday for its outdated and absurd policies on traumatized war veterans, in a Facebook eulogy for her brother on Friday.

    She included the letter she left for their mother, where she said, “I want you to know, Mom, that it doesn’t hurt anymore. Now, mother, I have finally found my peace… I am so tired, so exhausted. Each day adds to my pain and difficulty as I watch you struggle with the remnants of your strength… I don’t want you to have false hope. I have no place in this world.”

    Dagan described her brother’s struggles, saying: “Mum dedicated her life to trying to save Asaf… He showed all the classic symptoms of PTSD.”

    She highlighted her mother’s relentless efforts, noting that her pleas to Ministry of Defense and various other organizations fell on deaf ears.

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

    Dagan pointed out, “Asaf was a clear case of a combat veteran suffering from PTSD… The worst cases isolate themselves and wither away.”

    Military burial and the PTSD support system critique

    In her post, Dagan also highlighted bureaucratic indifference, stating: “According to antiquated MoD protocols… Asaf should have ‘reached out’ and asked for help.”

    She pointed out the “absurdity” of the system, noting, “Everybody knows that a characteristic of traumatized veterans is that they are unable to ask for help.”

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

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

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    Dagan concluded with the message: “Asaf, I miss you and love you. We will not give up.”



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