Spiritual leader Prince Karim Aga Khan dies at 88

 

Lisbon (Point News Latest. 05 February 2025) Spiritual leader Prince Karim Aga Khan has passed away at the age of 88. According to the announcement, 88-year-old Prince Karim Aga Khan passed away in the capital of Portugal, Lisbon. Prince Karim Aga Khan was the 49th Imam of the Ismaili community. His funeral prayers and burial will also be held in Lisbon. The date and time will be announced after the arrangements are finalized.

Prince Karim Aga Khan’s funeral prayers will be offered in Lisbon. Special prayers have been started in Jamaat-e-Khans around the world on the death of Prince Karim Aga Khan. Durood Tasbeeh will continue on the official website of the Ismaili community until the announcement of the new leader. Prince Karim Aga Khan was known for his charitable works and service to humanity.

Prince Karim Aga Khan was born in Switzerland in 1936 and spent his early childhood in Nairobi. He assumed the Imamate in 1957 at the age of 20.

Prince Karim Aga Khan was the eldest son of Prince Ali Khan. Prince Karim's grandfather was Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah Aga Khan III. Prince Karim Aga Khan was ordained Imam on 11 July 1957. He was 20 years old at the time. Prince Karim's grandfather was Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah Aga Khan, an Ismaili. Prince Karim Aga Khan devoted his life to improving the lives of the underprivileged. He emphasized that Islam is a religion of compassion, tolerance and human dignity.

Prince Karim Aga Khan received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Islamic history from Le Rosey School in Switzerland and then from Harvard University in 1959. Contrary to thirteen hundred years of historical tradition, Aga Khan III made his grandson his successor instead of his son. Prince Karim Aga Khan was also granted British citizenship, but he spent most of his life in France. Vanity Fair magazine called him a one-man estate. His first wife was British model Sally Croker-Poole, whom he married in 1969.

Prince Karim had two sons and a daughter with Sally Croker. Prince Karim Aga Khan sponsored various educational, cultural and economic development projects in his life, which improved the lives of millions of people. His guidance and charitable work were appreciated internationally. In Pakistan, Prince Karim Aga Khan was awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz and the Sitara-e-Pakistan.

More details about the nomination of the new Imam of the Ismaili community will be provided soon. Prince Karim Aga Khan spent his life improving the lives of the underprivileged, emphasizing that Islam is a religion of compassion, tolerance and human dignity. Through the Aga Khan Development Network, he carried out welfare initiatives in different regions of the world, especially in Asia and Africa, these initiatives were mostly in the fields of education, health, economy and culture. In 2023 alone, the Aga Khan Foundation donated 58 million pounds.