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'He was a true friend': Sheikh Mohammed mourns death of spiritual leader Aga Khan

Besides being a billionaire who owned champion horses, the imam of Ismaili Muslims poured millions into helping people in the poorest parts of the world

Published: Wed 5 Feb 2025, 4:33 PM

Updated: Wed 5 Feb 2025, 9:22 PM

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Photo: Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum / X

Photo: Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum / X

For the Ruler of Dubai, Aga Khan was more than a "great leader for his people", he was a "true friend", too.

Aga Khan, a well-known philanthropist and a spiritual leader of Ismaili Muslims, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 88, leaving millions of followers in mourning across the world.

Soon after the imam's death was announced on Wednesday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, expressed his sympathies in a heartfelt post on X.

"He was not only a great leader for his people, but a true friend and an equestrian who loved and understood horses deeply," he said.

"Above all, he stood as one of the world’s greatest philanthropists, whose life’s work was dedicated to relieving the hopelessness of poverty and promoting human development, building bridges between communities and working tirelessly in the cause of peace."

Aga Khan was the 49th hereditary imam or spiritual leader of the world's 15 million Ismaili Muslims.

Besides being a multimillionaire — perhaps a billionaire — who owned champion horses, Aga Khan poured millions into helping people in the poorest parts of the world.

Sheikh Mohammed called him "one of the world’s greatest philanthropists".

Aga Khan, he said, dedicated his life's work "to relieving the hopelessness of poverty and promoting human development, building bridges between communities and working tirelessly in the cause of peace".

The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has been supporting vulnerable communities and humanitarian foundations around the world.

"If you travel the developing world, you see poverty is the driver of tragic despair, and there is the possibility that any means out will be taken," he told the New York Times in a rare interview in 2007.

In the UAE, its activities revolved around "education, culture and the arts", it said on its website. It has partnered with several organisations, including Dubai Cares, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism, and Art Dubai.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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