Muhammad Ali barely able to speak or leave house, says his brother

MUHAMMAD Ali’s battle with Parkinson’s disease has reached the point at which he can barely speak, his brother has revealed.

The legendary boxer, 72, was too ill to attend the premiere of a film about his life last week — or to take part in any of the production for it.

“I have not been able to talk to my brother about this because he is sick,” Rahman, 71, told the Sunday People at a screening of I Am Ali in Hollywood.

“He doesn’t speak too well. But he is proud that we are here for him. He has given this film his blessing.”

The new film uses “audio journals” from Ali’s life to provide an intimate portrait of his life, with a focus on his family.

Fellow boxers including Mike Tyson and George Foreman, who fought him in one of the most famous bouts in history, give interviews as do his children and other family members.

Ali’s daughter Maryum, 46, who also attended the screening, said: “He has not seen the film yet, but I am very excited for him to see it.

“He is going to love it. I know he is. He is going to cry, he is going to laugh. He will be very proud.”

Members of the Ali family have spoken in the past about their fears that his suffering has grown too great to bear.

In January, his son, Ali Jr, said he considered there was “no chance” of his father living another year.

He said: “I just want, hope and pray to God that this awful disease takes my dad sooner rather than later. Take him away from all the suffering he’s in.”

However, other family members, including his wife and other daughters, have rejected suggestions that he is close to death.