Aga Khan IV, wealthy friend and patron of Justin Trudeau, dies at 88

The Aga Khan IV, the wealthy spiritual leader of the Ismaili Muslim community and a major global philanthropist, has died at the age of 88 in Lisbon, Portugal, his charitable foundation announced on Tuesday.

Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, as he was formally known, led the world’s 12 million Ismaili Muslims for nearly seven decades after inheriting the title from his grandfather in 1957 at the age of 20. He was also a close personal friend of the Trudeau family, a relationship that sparked the first major conflict of interest scandal of the present Liberal government after it was elected in 2016.

“He was a unique historic figure,” said Arif Lalani, a former Canadian ambassador who ran the Aga Khan’s diplomatic service from 2016 to 2020 who compared his influence to that of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Canada became an important Ismaili community during his tenure, after Pierre Trudeau welcomed over 6,000 Ismaili refugees from Uganda who had been expelled by dictator Idi Amin in 1972. That has since grown to more than 80,000 and includes Canada’s first Muslim justice minister and first Muslim Supreme Court Justice.

The Aga Khan addressed a joint session of Parliament in 2014 and was instrumental in the construction of the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. He also helped establish the Global Centre for Pluralism in Ottawa with the government of Canada.

While he was revered for his charitable efforts through the Aga Khan Development Network, his name also became entangled in Canadian politics when it was revealed that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had taken a controversial vacation to the religious leader’s private island in the Bahamas in 2016.

The visit became the focus of an ethics scandal when Ottawa’s Ethics Commissioner found Trudeau had violated federal law by accepting the trip. 

The Aga Khan’s foundation had received millions in government funding and the commissioner ruled that Trudeau’s close relationship with the billionaire spiritual leader created a clear conflict of interest. Trudeau later apologized for what he called a “lapse in judgment,” but the incident became one of the early scandals to tarnish his tenure as prime minister.

Despite such controversies, the Aga Khan remained an influential figure, known for directing billions of dollars toward education, health care, and development projects in some of the world’s poorest regions. 

Born in Switzerland and holding British citizenship, the Aga Khan was known for his love of horse racing and luxury. He owned the infamous racehorse Shergar, which was stolen in Ireland in 1983 and never recovered. His wealth also afforded him a lavish lifestyle, including a £100-million (CAD$178 million) yacht and estates in France.

A quote attributed to him reads: “Every day has been so short, every hour so fleeting, every minute so filled with the life I love that time for me has fled on too swift a wing. Struggle is the meaning of life; defeat or victory is in the hands of God. But struggle itself is man's duty and should be his joy.

His successor is expected to be his eldest son, Prince Rahim, 53, though an official announcement has yet to be made.