At least 59 Canadian soldiers died by suicide after Afghanistan war

[polly7]

The Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Nov. 02, 2015 10:39PM EST
Last updated Monday, Nov. 02, 2015 10:39PM EST

After long refusing to disclose how many soldiers have killed themselves after serving in the Afghanistan war, the Canadian military released new figures late Monday that raises the suicide count to at least 59.

The updated tally includes 53 who were still-serving military members and six veterans identified through a Globe and Mail investigation. The new count is five higher than the number uncovered by The Globe and includes four suicides of active-duty members that have occurred this year.

The Unremembered

158 Canadian soldiers died in the Afghanistan mission. But the losses did not end there. A Globe and Mail investigation reveals a disturbing number the military has kept secret: that at least 54 soldiers and vets killed themselves after they returned from war

RENATA D’ALIESIO

OROMOCTO, N.B. The Globe and Mail Last updated: Monday, Nov. 02, 2015 3:45PM EST

The Canadian army desperately needed men like Scott Smith.

A hard-nosed counsellor who worked with troubled teens in the Vancouver Island wilderness, he looked the part of a soldier. He was tall and muscular, with a gruff appearance that concealed his fun-loving side.

Cpl. Scott Smith was a counsellor at a wilderness camp for troubled teens on Vancouver Island before joining the military in 2009.

He came back a frayed man, his mind ravaged by the eternal replay of war. He started drinking more and spending less time with his wife and two young boys. Large crowds spooked him. Even an outing to a pumpkin patch he found unnerving.

Last December, two years after returning from Afghanistan, Cpl. Smith, who had counselled others against suicide, ended his own life after a military Christmas party. He was 31 years old.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/veterans/article26499878/