Addictions on the rise among Israelis exposed to October 7 attacks

At 19, Israeli man Yoni has to put aside his plans to join the military and instead enter rehab for drug abuse that has worsened since the Hamas-led October 7 attacks. Health professionals said Yoni’s case is not an exception in wartime Israel, noting a surge in drug and alcohol abuse as well as other addictive behaviours. Psychiatrist Shaul Lev-Ran, founder of the Israel Center on Addiction, carried out a study with his team, and found “a connection between indirect exposure to the October 7 events and an increase in addictive substances consumption” of about 25 percent.