SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Iraqi ministry of interior said on Saturday it will investigate a surge in suicide cases in the country, after it recorded more than 700 cases in 2021.
Spokesman of Iraq’s interior ministry Khalid Mihana said there were 772 cases of suicide in the country in 2021.
“It is 100 cases higher than last year,” he said. “The cases of suicide have begun to rise since 2016.”
There were 393 cases in 2016, 462 in 2017, 530 in 2018 and 605 in 2019, he added.
The rate of suicide among people who are below 18 years was 36.6% and it was %32.2 among people between 20 and 30 years, the Iraqi official noted.
The rate was higher among men than women, Mihana said. It was 55.9% among men while it was 44.8% among women.
He further said the ministry had formed a committee to investigate the increase in suicide cases and reasons behind it.
Various factors could contribute to rates of suicide in Iraq, including intimate partner problems, physical health conditions, financial challenges, and legal issues, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Others are personal or family experiences of violence, such as child abuse, pr family history of suicide and broader community conditions, including high crime rates and violence, WHO reported.
