KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – An 18-year-old boy has died by suicide in western Kabul amid a surge in the suicide rate in recent years.
The teenager was found hanging on the fifth floor of a supermarket in Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood at around 3:30 pm on Sunday, eyewitnesses said.
The identity of the deceased was not immediately known.
Sources said the body was shifted to a hospital.
The motive behind the teenager’s suicide is unclear. However, sources said financial constraints and mental health issues could have contributed to his tragic death.
Three years on from the Taliban takeover, suicide is on the rise across Afghanistan amid a worsening human rights and humanitarian crisis, acute hunger, and a high rate of unemployment.
Life has become extremely difficult for many vulnerable people, particularly women, and girls who have been deprived of basic human rights.
A 2022 study by the US-based organization Gallup found that 98% of Afghanistan’s population suffers from psychological distress.
In a report last year, Etilaatroz newspaper revealed that at least 213 individuals across 28 provinces of Afghanistan took their own lives over a year for various reasons. The report indicated that nearly 80% of those who committed suicide were under the age of 20.
