Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — An 11-year-old boy in Baha has committed suicide because he did not receive enough "likes" on the posts he had posted on social networking websites, according to sources in the Public Prosecution. They said the boy had a passion for electronic games and he wanted to become famous on social media. The sources said the boy posted a video clip about the world of the jinn on one of the sites but did not get a large number of "likes" from his followers. They said the boy was desperate and did not stop his attempt to become famous. He posted another video about himself. The sources said the boy was looking forward to a large number of "likes" but he failed to obtain them. In desperation, he decided to his life, the sources said. After returning from school, the boy hanged himself by an electric recharge wire, which he tied to his wardrobe. The sources said the boy's mother did not know about the suicide until a long time afterward. They said the video game "Pubg Mobile" was found in the boy's mobile phone in addition to three clips in which he talked about the jinn in deserted places. Meanwhile, psychologists believe parents who do not closely watch their children when they use the Internet are to blame for such violent incidents. Arwa Arab, a psychiatrist, warned that some children could be easily influenced by what they watch on the Internet. Video games often influence children and diversely affect their psychological health, she added. "The families who do not watch their children while they are on the Internet will be committing a grave mistake and should be held responsible," Arab said. She also called for closely watching shops that sell video games as some of them are dangerous and may affect the children's beliefs, personality and behavior. Duaa Zahrn, another female psychiatrist, believes that if children are left alone to playing video games, they could be influenced by these games. "The families should carefully watch their children while they play video games so as not to be negatively affected by them," she said.
