 The graph of suicides amongst US soldiers deployed on overseas war fronts is rising dangerously.In a new troops surge, the US has announced deployment of 30,000 additional troops in Afghanistan while there are some 68,000 American soldiers already fighting in the war-ravaged country. However, there is clear frustration in the US fighting force about its chances of success on this front. This has led to high levels of frustration and a marked increase in the suicide rate among US soldiers who are finding themselves under great stress in these combat missions.
In fact, the US army has come under severe strain from years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, with officers citing repeated deployments and the stress of combat as fuelling an increase in depression and marital problems.
There were 140 suspected suicide cases amongst US soldiers in 2009 alone. Though the reasons for the rising suicides vary, Admiral Mike Mullen has acknowledged the stress of the wars on the army and the Marine Corps, but has said he did not think the force was at a "tipping point."
The US Marine Corps in January this year reported that 41 Marines had committed suicide in 2008, the highest rate since 1995 when it was slightly under 20 per 100,000. Among the 41 Marine suicides, six were in Iraq. The Marine Corps said the rate for 2008 was 16.8 per 100,000, only marginally higher than the 2007 rate of 16.5. But officials said the figure was incorrect because of a computational error.
By the end of September this year, there had been 117 suicides in the Army and 38 in the Marine Corp, with a further 35 deaths still under investigation. Suicide among Marines, who form the bulk of the 17,000 additional troops that the Obama administration rushed to Afghanistan earlier this year, has increased by 20 percent this year. The majority of Marines and soldiers who have taken their own lives had served tours in one of the two war zones.
Factors contributing to suicides are said to include loneliness ("an emotional state in which a person experiences powerful feelings of emptiness and spiritual isolation"), worthlessness ("an emotional state in which an individual lacks any feelings of being valued by others"), hopelessness ("a strong sense of futility, due to the belief that the future holds no escape from current negative circumstances"), helplessness, and guilt ("a strong sense of shame associated with actions they believe are wrong").
According to a report in The Times by James Cogan, published on 17 October, 2009, a 20-year-old soldier, Specialist Raquime Mercer, commented, "We're lost. That's how I feel. I'm not exactly sure why we're here. I need a clear-cut purpose if I'm going to get hurt out here or if I'm going to die. The soldiers' biggest question is: what can we do to make this war stop? Catch one person? Assault one objective? Soldiers want definite answers other than to stop the Taliban, because that seems almost impossible. It's hard to catch someone you can't see."
The report further said "Earlier this month, 28-year-old Dylan Kemp, a Royal Marine commando, hung himself shortly after returning from seven months of intense combat operations in Afghanistan. He had been arrested for road rage and reportedly assaulting his girlfriend. His friend told the Mirror, "Afghanistan tipped him over the edge. He said in his note he was sure many more squaddies (soldiers) would end up in a messed-up state like him. He was just so full of anger. His mental scars couldn't be healed."
To deal with the rising suicides, a $50-million study will include a survey of up to 120,000 recruits who enter army every year and will analyse data and interview soldiers who attempted suicide in the past, comparing them to individuals with similar demographic characteristics.
On the other hand, the Obama administration, along with the troops increase in Afghanistan, has also hinted at possible withdrawal from Afghanistan within 18 months or so which would be an encouraging step for the US forces and their morale, if made possible. 
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