At least six teenagers at different high schools have tried to commit suicide over the past six weeks.
By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAY (TRANSLATED)
Tel Aviv municipal officials are worried by a spate of suicide attempts at various high schools in recent weeks, reports Yediot Tel Aviv. Municipal health workers have begun investigating the phenomenon, in which at least six teenagers at different high schools have tried to commit suicide over the past six weeks, and suggest that the prolonged teachers' strike at the beginning of the school year is one reason, with too much pressure being placed on students in an attempt to catch up with the schedule.
According to the report, local education authorities consider one attempted suicide per month "routine," and cannot recall anything like the current spate of one attempt per week. Some of the teenagers have reportedly overdosed on prescription medicines, while others have resorted to measures such as cutting wrists.
One school principal said the great pressure being placed on students to catch up after the two-month teachers' strike had resulted in numerous problems, and that suicide attempts were often a desperate attempt to win the attention of parents and friends. A psychiatrist also said the teachers' strike had placed heavy pressure on students, and said the suicide attempts were a cry for help.
A municipal spokesman said past experience showed that newspaper reports about teenaged suicides actually caused a rise in suicide attempts, and so did not want to comment on the subject.