Non secular chief of the Ismaili Shia neighborhood was identified for his improvement work all over the world.
The Aga Khan, non secular chief of the Ismaili Shia Muslim neighborhood and identified for his improvement work all over the world, has died in Lisbon aged 88.
In keeping with the Aga Khan Growth Community, an announcement to designate a successor to Karim al-Husseini, as he was identified, will happen quickly.
A successor will probably be chosen from the Aga Khan’s male progeny, based on Ismaili custom.
The Aga Khan lived at size in France and had been based mostly in Portugal lately. His improvement community and basis are based mostly in Switzerland. He will probably be buried in Lisbon. He’s survived by three sons and a daughter and a number of other grandchildren.
He was born on December 13, 1936, in Geneva and spent his early childhood in Nairobi, Kenya. He later returned to Switzerland, attending the unique Le Rosey College earlier than going to the US to check Islamic historical past at Harvard.
When his grandfather Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan died in 1957, he grew to become the imam of the Ismaili Muslims, a department of Shia Islam, on the age of 20.
I’m deeply saddened by the information that His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, has handed away. He was an emblem of peace, tolerance and compassion in our troubled world.
I specific my deepest condolences to His Highness’s household and the Ismaili neighborhood. pic.twitter.com/VvXCrq8zPQ
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) February 4, 2025
As Aga Khan – derived from Turkish and Persian phrases to imply commanding chief – he was believed by Ismailis to be a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad by the prophet’s cousin and son-in-law, Ali, and his spouse Fatima, the prophet’s daughter.
The Aga Khan was a defender of Islamic tradition and values and was extensively thought to be a builder of bridges between Muslim societies and the West regardless of his reticence to change into concerned with politics.
The multimillionaire additionally loved a lavish life-style, characterised by personal jets, superyachts and a personal island within the Bahamas. He held British, French, Swiss, and Portuguese citizenship.
The Aga Khan Growth Community, his essential philanthropic organisation, offers principally with healthcare, housing, schooling, and rural financial improvement.
It claims to work in additional than 30 nations, using 96,000 individuals and has an annual price range of about $1bn for improvement actions. It helps to construct colleges and hospitals within the poorest components of Africa and Asia.
