Yazidis mourn death of spiritual leader Baba Sheikh

Sheikh Khurto Haji Ismail died in northern Iraq on Thursday at the age of 87

Iraqi Yazidi men carry the casket of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail, supreme spiritual leader of the Yazidi religious minority, during his funeral procession in the Iraqi town of Sheikhan on October 2, 2020. AFP

Iraqi Yazidi men carry the casket of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail during his funeral procession in the Iraqi town of Sheikhan. AFP

Iraqi Yazidi men surround the casket of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail during his funeral procession in the Iraqi town of Sheikhan. AFP

Iraqi Yazidis burn incense during the funeral of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail. AFP

Iraqi Yazidis burn incense during the funeral of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail. AFP

An Iraqi Yazidi woman comforts a grieving youngster during the funeral of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail. AFP

Iraqi Yazidi women attend the funeral of Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail. AFP

The spiritual leader of Iraq's Yazidi religious minority, Baba Sheikh Khurto Haji Ismail, died on Thursday at the age of 87, drawing rich tributes for his stance in welcoming back women of the community who were forced into sexual slavery by ISIS.

Nadia Murad, a former ISIS slave who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018 for championing the cause of victims of sexual violence, said the Yazidi community "lost a beacon of light with the passing Baba Sheikh".

"The Yazidi spiritual leader embodied our values of wisdom, kindness and tolerance," Ms Murad wrote on Twitter. "He led the community by example and treated Yazidi survivors with love and respect. He will be forever missed."

Baba Sheikh served as the Yazidi spiritual head since 2007 and lived in the town of Ain Sifni in northern Iraq. He was buried on Friday in Sheikhan, the town about 50 kilometres from the northern city of Mosul in Nineveh province.

Iraqi President Barham Salih issued a message of condolence to Yazidis on Twitter, describing Baba Sheikh as "one of the symbols of tolerance and coexistence in the country".

"His national stances in the face of injustice and terrorism were admired and appreciated, and his wisdom dealing with Yazidi female survivors is an example to follow," President Salih said.

The Free Yazidi Foundation, a nonprofit set up in 2014 after ISIS attacked the Yazidi homeland in Iraq's northern Sinjar district, said Baba Sheikh would be remembered as "one of the most important leaders of the Yazidis".

"His office has worked hard to help Yazidis maintain their identity despite the struggles and challenges our people face. After the 2014 genocide, it was Baba Sheikh [who] made the religious decision to accept Yazidi female survivors back into the community," the foundation said in a statement announcing the spiritual leader's death.

The death of Baba Sheikh is the second loss suffered by Yazidis this year. In January, the head of the world's Yazidi community died in Germany at the age of 85 after a lengthy illness.

Prince Tahseen Said Ali had led the Yazidi community since the age of 11, following the death of his father. Born in the Yazidi homeland in northern Iraq in 1933, the prince later moved to Germany, which is home to the religious minority's largest expatriate community.

He appointed his son, Hazem, to succeed him.