Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Tuesday that a significant number of Israeli soldiers have suffered injuries during the current war on Gaza that may threaten their "fertility preservation." A defense ministry official also spoke of the psychological symptoms suffered by injured soldiers.
The paper stated that more than two months into the war, the Israeli healthcare system is dealing with an unusually high rate of urinary tract injuries among wounded soldiers.
It was highlighted that the importance and severity of these injuries, which are related to the urinary system, the tubes, and the reproductive organs, lie in the potential future damage to sexual function, masculinity, and the ability to preserve fertility.
Despite there being more serious injuries than those related to the urinary tract, the latter "bother soldiers more than injuries that could endanger their lives," the newspaper noted.
The report mentioned a quick procedure carried out by Assuta Hospital in Ashdod, southern Israel, to preserve the sperm of a soldier who sustained a severe urinary tract injury, due to "concerns that it could lead to future incapacity to produce sperm cells."
In the same context, Yedioth Ahronoth quoted Orit Raz, head of the urology department at "Assuta," saying that about 80% of the injured soldiers who come for treatment need intervention in the urinary tract.
Raz explained that an injury to the urinary tract could cause lifelong damage, emphasizing that even injuries that appear minor due to war "are considered severe, both from a functional and psychological standpoint afterward."
"The man at any age wants to preserve his function and masculinity, and young people need this function because they are still ready to start families and build relationships," she added.
Thus, Raz talked about not always being able to see the extent of internal injuries when a soldier suffers an amputation of the leg, explaining that one soldier whose leg was amputated below the knee was later found to have one testicle severely damaged while "the other testicle was shocked."
Besides fertility concerns, the head of the rehabilitation department in the Israeli Defense Ministry announced on Tuesday that 18% of the Israeli soldiers injured are suffering from psychological symptoms.
About two weeks ago, Israeli official media reported that nearly 100 Israeli soldiers suffered serious eye injuries in the battles of Gaza, with 10 to 15% of those injuries resulting in blindness in one or both eyes.
On Monday, the Israeli army announced that 1,831 of its members had been injured since the start of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, including 704 since the outbreak of ground combat on the 27th of that month.
Among the total injuries since the beginning of the war, there are 289 with serious wounds, 512 with moderate injuries, and 1,030 with minor injuries, without clarification on the nature of these injuries nor the criteria for their description.
The Israeli army also announced on Monday that the number of its fatalities since the start of the war had risen to 463 service members, including officers and soldiers.
