His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, passed away in Lisbon on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at the age of 88.
The Aga Khan -- believed by the Ismailis to be a direct descendant of Prophet Muhammad -- was the spiritual leader of around 12 million followers of the Ismaili sect of Islam.
'As we honour the legacy of our founder, Prince Karim Aga Khan, we continue to work with our partners to improve the quality of life for individuals and communities across the world, as he wished, irrespective of their religious affiliations or origins,' a statement from the Aga Khan Development Network read.
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with Prime Minister Narendra D Modi. Photograph: Kind courtesy, pmindia.gov.in
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with then prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, September 20, 2006. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with then President A P J Abdul Kalam, September 20, 2006. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with Sonia Gandhi, May 12, 2008. Photograph: Vijay Mathur/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with then President Pratibha Patil, May 13, 2008. Photograph: B Mathur/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, April 14, 2003. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan and then Canadian governor general Adrienne Clarkson look at a design for the new Ismaili Imamat in Ottawa, June 6, 2005. Photograph: Chris Wattie/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with then Canadian prime minister Paul Martin in Ottawa, June 6, 2005. Photograph: Jim Young/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan delivers his speech as commencement speaker at MIT. Photograph: Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan and Tajik leader Imomali Rakhmonov at Dushanbe airport in Tajikistan. Photograph: Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan lays a foundation stone at the new Aga Khan Academy in Hyderabad, September 22, 2006 as then Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekha Reddy looks on. Photograph: Krishnendu Halder/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan, patron-in-chief of the Aga Khan University in Karachi, with Pakistan's then prime minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali at its 16th convocation, December 6, 2003. Photograph: Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with his German wife leaves the winners enclosure at Ascot. Photograph: Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan with Pakistan's then military ruler General Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad, October 16, 2000. Photograph: Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan and Canada's then prime minister Stephen Harper at the opening of the Ismaili Centre and Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, September 12, 2014. Photograph: Fred Thornhill/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan is welcomed by Portugal's then president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at the Belem presidential palace in Lisbon, July 9, 2018. Photograph: Rafael Marchante/Reuters
IMAGE: The Aga Khan receives the Derby trophy after his horse Kayhasi won the race in Epsom, England, June 1, 1988. Photograph: Martyn Hayhow/Reuters
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com
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