According to the support group for friends and family of UN and NATO veterans, more than 200 Norwegian soldiers and officers have committed suicide over the past 30 years.
All suicide victims had served in operations abroad. Many of them were young, unprepared and without experience, NRK reports. For some, the horrific memories from the war became too difficult to live with.
Since 1978, more than 200 Norwegian soldiers have taken their own life, according to the support group for friends and family of UN and NATO veterans in Norway.
"The main reason is that these people have gone through a tremendous amount of stress over a long period of time. Because there is currently no competent system in place to take care of these people, their posttraumatic stress disorders (PST) will continue to develop," says Rigmor Flygansvær, head of the support group.
Frank Cato Lahti, a former captain of the secret services, tells NRK about the challenge of returning from an assignment abroad.
"You picture the bodies, the screams and feel the smells. Images of destructed humans reappear," he says. Lahti now suffers from psychological disorders, and claims that the Norwegian forces did not offer him any briefing or support once he returned from the war.
Chief psychiatrist in the Norwegian forces, Jon Gerhard Reichelt says that no research has been done on the delayed damage on returning soldiers.
He acknowledges that working abroad can cause a lot of stress, but thinks it's too strong to say that that the Norwegian forces have not done enough for the veterans.
"We have a pretty extensive system in place that follows up with soldiers before, during and after their service. Time will tell if this system is good enough," says Reichelt.
(NRK)
Julie Ryland
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