Ali’s movement is restricted to only a few meters after he fell ill when he was 15. No one is around to talk to him and the only sound he listens to is that of his clanking iron restraints, Al-Riyadh newspaper reported.

Omar is Ali’s younger brother and takes care of him along with five other members of the family including his sick mother. Ali is kept inside a small room and no one is allowed to come near him because of his illness. His brother said that his condition makes him very aggressive, attacking anyone that comes nearby.

Omar said that his family is poor and has no source of income. They do not receive any assistance from the social security office or from any charity organization.

“I was forced to chain my brother in this small room to protect him and protect others from him. His health condition is deteriorating every day,” he said.

“I am searching for a cure to his condition but I have had no luck yet. If I let my brother go, then he will place the whole family in danger. On two occasions, he tried to burn down the house. Both times we escaped but the whole house was severely damaged.”

Omar is urging government departments to come to his aid. He also appealed to charity organizations to help.

It is customary in the village to deal with the mentally ill by chaining them and isolating them. There are many other similar cases in the small village.

A 27-year-old mentally ill man, Jaber Ali Salem, also lives his life chained and isolated in a room.

Jaber started suffering from psychological problems when he was in the third grade of school. His family was forced to chain him in a room after he became aggressive.

His two brothers also suffered from the same condition but they are responding to medication. One of the other brothers was forced to quit school to take care of his sick brothers and his sick and old parents. The family has a small income that is mostly used to buy medicines for the sick children.

Dr. Rashad Al-Sunousi, psychiatrist and head of the research center at Jazan University, said these people need urgent help.

He said that he was sorry to see these cases still existing in society when they can be treated medically and psychologically.

He added that there is a humanitarian duty toward these families, who he said should look for treatment options at hospitals while the health authorities should also find ways to reach these sick people.

“The general belief in poor parts of the Kingdom is that these people are possessed or a magic spell has been cast on them. This persuades the family to keep them isolated and never take them to doctors.”