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Yazidi spiritual leader Baba Sheikh dies at 87

Nobel laureate Nadia Murad described him as "a beacon of light."
Iraqi Yazidis burn incense during the funeral of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail (image), supreme spiritual leader of the Yazidi religious minority, in the Iraqi town of Sheikhan, 50km northeast of Mosul, on October 2, 2020. - Iraq's Yazidi minority laid to rest their spiritual leader today as tributes poured in for the man who guided his flock through the horrors of Islamic State group occupation.
Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail died late yesterday at the age of 87, his office said. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED /

Members of the Yazidi faith are mourning the loss of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail, the spiritual leader of their ancient religious minority. 

Baba Sheikh died Thursday at the age of 87 from health complications, his office said. He was hospitalized on Tuesday in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, for kidney and heart issues.

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