Some 1,000 Israeli teenagers who receive help from Elem, a nongovernmental organization that helps young people in distress, injured themselves or attempted suicide in 2016, the organization's annual report said Monday. The number represents 5% of the approximately 20,000 at-risk youths in Elem's care. Elem also reported that around 800 teens, or 4% of those in its care, were involved in prostitution in 2016. Around 19% of the teenagers that Elem encounters are either homeless or living in out-of-home frameworks. Some 1,000 of these teens sleep on the street every night, and around 200 spend their nights at strangers' homes in exchange for sexual services. According to the report, Elem provided assistance to 1,442 teens from the Arab sector in 2016. In April 2016, the Health Ministry issued a report saying that the suicide rate in Israel was at its lowest since 2007, and that suicide rates in Israel were the second-lowest in comparison with 28 European countries.
