JERUSALEM

Thirty-two percent of Israelis need mental health support after more two years of war, a new opinion poll found on Wednesday.

The findings came from a survey conducted by Maccabi Healthcare Services, one of Israel’s major health care providers, based on a representative sample of 1,100 people aged between 20 and 75 from across the country, The Times of Israel newspaper reported.

The survey, conducted in November, found that 32% of respondents said they required specialized psychological support, the highest rate recorded since the survey began.

Among military personnel who served during the past year, the situation appeared more severe, with 39% saying they needed mental health support, 26% reported concerns about depression, and 48% said they were experiencing sleep problems, the outlet said.

Overall mental well-being also declined, with 17% of respondents describing their psychological condition as average or poor, compared with 13% before the Gaza war, according to the report.

The data also showed a rise in smoking rates in 2025, as 30% of smokers said they increased their cigarette consumption because of psychological stress.

Medical data reviewed in the survey indicated a 4% decline in births compared with 2024, reflecting broader psychological and social effects of the war, according to the outlet.

The Gaza war has weighed heavily on daily life in Israel. The Israeli military said Tuesday evening that 21 of its members died by suicide since the beginning of 2025.

An Oct. 10 ceasefire deal halted Israel’s two-year war that killed over 71,200 Palestinians, most of them women and children, injured more than 171,200 others since October 2023 and left the enclave in ruins.

Despite the ceasefire, Israeli attacks continued in Gaza, killing more than 400 people and injuring over 1,100 others, according to health authorities.