Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, addressing the London Conference on Afghanistan on December 4, 2014
Lisbon, February 5 — His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, the Aga Khan, 49 hereditary Spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and a philanthropist with immense wealth, has died February 4 at the age of 88.
A statement by the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) on X said “His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), passed away peacefully in Lisbon on February 4, 2025, at the age of 88, surrounded by his family”.
The name of his successor, the 50th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, will be announced in Lisbon soon before the funeral once the family, the leaders of the Ismaili community, and the executors of the late imam’s last will have gathered, the Nizari Ismailis explained on a website specifically dedicated to the transition.
Born on December 13, 1936 to Aly Khan and British born Joan Yarde-BullerKarim, in Geneva, Karim Al-Hussaini was enthroned in 1957 as the 49th imam of the Nizari Ismailis, the second-largest Shia Muslim group, numbering between 12 and 15 million members worldwide, particularly in Central and South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
At just under 21, he succeeded his grandfather, Sultan Mahomed Shah. His father, Ali, had been excluded from the succession after his tumultuous marriage to American actress Rita Hayworth.
Prince Karim spent his childhood in Nairobi and his attachment to East Africa saw the Aga Khan establish highly impactful institutions in the region over the years.
Prince Karim expanded the already considerable work of his grandfather, who had established hospitals, housing projects, and cooperative banks in developing countries.
The heir invested a vast portion of the family’s immense fortune—whose exact amount remains unknown—into the world’s most disadvantaged regions, combining philanthropy with business acumen.
To achieve this, he founded the AKDN, a vast foundation claiming 96,000 employees worldwide and funding development programs, particularly in Asia and Africa.
Since 1984, this network has included an economic development branch, the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), which employs 36,000 people, operates 90 companies and generates annual revenues of $4.5 billion.
A billionaire who owned yachts and private jets, the Aga Khan established the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1977 to recognize innovative architectural projects in Muslim societies.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres on his X platform, expressed that he was “deeply saddened” by the news of the Aga Khan’s passing. “He was a symbol of peace, tolerance, and compassion in our troubled world.”
The Aga Khan had four children: Zahra, Rahim, and Hussain, from his first marriage to British model Sally Crocker-Poole, and Aly, born in 2000 from a second union with German lawyer Gabriele zu Leiningen, from whom he divorced in 2004.
