Shafaq News / The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, mourned the spiritual father of the Yazidi religion, Baba Sheikh, who died in Erbil, earlier today, Thursday.

In a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, Al-Kadhimi said, "With great sorrow, we mourn to the Iraqi people in general, and to the honorable followers of the Yazidi religion, the passing of his Eminence Baba Sheikh, the supreme religious authority and the spiritual father of all Yezidis in the world, Khartu Haji Ismail".

He added, "On this painful occasion, we express, in the name of all the fraternal sects of the Iraqi people, emotional solidarity with the family of the deceased, his loved ones and the rest of the Yazidis. We also share their sadness as we share the fate and coexistence in this homeland".

The Prime Minister added that the deceased was a supporter of brotherhood and love, a spiritual cleric who cherished the coexistence on this land and a man of peace and fortitude in the difficult times that the Iraqis had passed through, as they faced the evils of ISIS and its barbarism.

Mir Jahour Ali, the undersecretary of the Emir of the Yazidis, told Shafaq News agency, that Baba Sheikh passed away in Sardam Hospital in Erbil at the age of 87 years.

He added that his body will be transported to his hometown in Sheikhan, Duhok Governorate, where it will be buried in a special religious ceremony.

Baba Sheikh, whose real name is Khartu Haji Ismail, is the supreme authority for all Yazidis in Iraq and the world and a member of the Spiritual Council of the Yazidi Religion.