The China Mail - Ismaili Muslims bid goodbye to late Aga Khan

Prince Karim al-Husseini, 88, died on Tuesday. He was regarded as a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed and enjoyed near divine status as the 49th hereditary imam of the Ismaili Nizaris, a branch of Shia Islam.

Saturday's private ceremony at the Ismaili community centre in Lisbon was attended by more than 300 guests, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Qatar Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and former Spanish king Juan Carlos I.

Aga Khan IV died in the Portuguese capital, where he had established the global headquarters of the Ismaili Shias in 2015.

He held British and Portuguese nationalities, as well as honorary Canadian citizenship, a distinction rarely given.

His remains were to be buried on Sunday during a private ceremony in Aswan, southern Egypt.

His eldest son, 53-year-old Rahim, will succeed him and take on the title of Aga Khan V.

- New Aga Khan -

The equivalent of an inauguration of the new Aga Khan will be held on Tuesday morning at the community's headquarters, a mansion in central Lisbon.

The Ismailis are the world's second-largest Shia Muslim group, which has between 12 and 15 million members globally, namely in central and south Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Born in Geneva on December 13, 1936, Al-Hussaini succeeded his grandfather, Mahomed Shah, as leader of the Ismailis in 1957, when he was only 20 years old.

His father, Ali, was excluded from the succession after his tumultuous marriage to US actress Rita Hayworth.

As Aga Khan, Al-Hussaini expanded the work of his grandfather, who created hospitals, housing and banking cooperatives in developing countries.

He invested part of the immense family fortune in the most deprived countries, combining philanthropy with business acumen.

To this end, he founded the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), a gigantic foundation which is thought to have 96,000 employees worldwide and which funds development programmes, mainly in Asia and Africa.

A keen racehorse owner, he continued the family tradition of breeding thoroughbreds in his eight stables in France and Ireland. His horses have many of the most prestigious races.

U.Feng--ThChM