Kurdish faith-healer offers to exorcise 'demon-possessed' Trump

The election of Donald Trump as the 45th US president has evoked mixed reactions worldwide and Iraq is no exception.

Some have greeted Trump's election as a good omen, a sign that US policy in the country, and the greater Middle East could become more transparent.

Others have looked at Trump’s lack of prior political experience, his seemingly unquestioning support for the Israeli state, and placement of Iraq on a "visa ban" program (that has now been lifted, against Iraqi nationals at least) with concern, trepidation, and also anger.

Those in support of Trump have named restaurants and even children after the billionaire real estate mogul, while others more wary have expressed criticism, among them firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who in January called the US president's proposal to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem "a declaration of war against Islam".

Trump is possessed and I need to beat him on the soles of his feet to get the jinni out of his body

But this week a Kurdish Iraqi faith-healer has taken a novel angle.

Concerned about Trump's sanity, and the potential repercussions of this perceived lack of sanity on a global scale, Mala Ali Kalak has offered to "cure" Trump using a seemingly unorthodox technique by mental health professionals' standards.

"Trump is possessed and I need to beat him on the soles of his feet to get the jinni out of his body," said Mala Ali, during an interview with Iraqi Kurdish news outlet Rudaw.

"He has lost his mind and oversteps his boundaries all the time. He needs help. Unless he is cured he will continue to act like he does now," continued the faith-healer.

"He will either go insane or be killed. He has become a creature that attacks everyone."

Mala Ali's statements may seem pretty throw-away, however, the Kurdish faith-healer makes bold claims to have effectively treated cases of cancer and HIV, and previously worked with Iraqi government officials.

Speaking to Rudaw Mala Ali also stated his willingness to cure Jalal Talabani, Iraq’s former president and head of Iraqi Kurdistan. Talabani suffered a stroke in 2012.

"I am still keeping my promise to treat him," said Mala Ali, "[But] the patient must come to me."

Most Iraqi MPs and ministers are possessed and they have come to me and I have thrashed them. They mostly come after work hours so no one sees them

 It seems unlikely that Mala Ali will get the opportunity to heal, let alone meet with President Trump, which is perhaps dissapointing. 

What would happen, for example, if Mala Ali, was presented by Trump's Vulcan Death grip-inspired handshake? It seems likely we will never know.

However, at least according to the faith-healer himself there are plenty of souls in Iraq - including among the country’s political classes - still in need of a little therapy.

"Most Iraqi MPs and ministers are possessed and they have come to me and I have thrashed them. They mostly come after work hours so no one sees them.

"I keep saying it but no one is listening to me. A huge number of jinnis have come to Iraq's sky. Even Lucifer himself is among them and I've heard this from the spirits themselves. Jinnis have occupied all of Iraq and Syria and the situation could only get worse."