Aga Khan IV, the religious chief, racehorse proprietor and good friend of Queen Elizabeth II, has died aged 88.
Regardless of spending most of his life out of the limelight, the Aga Khan was the religious chief of about 12 million folks from the Ismaili sect of Islam.
A few of his followers believed he was the direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed.
Picture:
The Aga Khan with Queen Elizabeth II in 2018. Pic: PA
A discover on the web site of the Aga Khan Growth Community – the event organisation he based – introduced his demise, saying that he “passed away peacefully in Lisbon on 4 February 2025… surrounded by his family”.
It stated: “His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, forty ninth hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), handed away peacefully in Lisbon on 4 February 2025, aged 88, surrounded by his household.
“Prince Karim Aga Khan was the founder and chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network.
“The announcement of his designated successor will observe.
“Leaders and staff of the Aga Khan Development Network offer our condolences to the family of His Highness and to the Ismaili community worldwide.
“As we honour the legacy of our founder, Prince Karim Aga Khan, we proceed to work with our companions to enhance the standard of life for people and communities internationally, as he wished, regardless of their non secular affiliations or origins.”
The Aga Khan, who inherited his title of the forty ninth Imam of the Shia Imami Ismailis in 1957 on the age of 20, was believed to have been price over £11bn on the time of his demise.
He was born in Switzerland and spent a lot of his later life in France, though he had British citizenship.
He was an outdated good friend of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who had bestowed on him the title of His Highness when he grew to become the chief of the Ismaili Muslims.
Very like the late royal, the Aga Khan was an enormous fan of horseracing and owned numerous horses.
These included the well-known Shergar, who was stolen by gunmen in Eire in 1983 and by no means seen once more.
He’s survived by his youngsters Princess Zahra, Prince Rahim, Prince Hussain and Prince Aly Muhammad, and 4 grandchildren.
