Khurto Hajji Ismail

Khurto Hajji Ismail (Kurdish: Xurto Hecî Îsmaîl‎) is the current Baba Sheikh or Axtîyarê Mergê Bavê Şêx—religious leader—of the Yazidi community of Iraq. He has held this position since 2007. He lives in Ain Sifni, Iraq.

In 2011, after a six-day visit to Georgia during which he met the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II, Baba Sheikh left Tbilisi to pay an official visit to the Vatican, where he met Pope Benedict XVI. During this visit, Baba Sheikh attended a conference held in Assisi on 27–28 October, where the main theme was the peaceful coexistence of different religions.