Serbian Patriarch Irinej, 91, passed away this morning at Karaburma Military Hospital, where he was being treated for a coronavirus infection, President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday.
On Thursday, it was announced that his condition worsened.
"It was an honour for me to know you. People like you never leave," Vucic wrote on Instagram under a black-and-white photo of the patriarch.
Earlier this week, Serbia introduced new restrictions in connection with COVID-19, with all stores and service centres being closed every day until morning.
The total number of COVID-infected people since the beginning of the pandemic has almost reached 98,000, with 1,081 deaths, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).