UK: King Charles honors Prince Rahim Aga Khan V with “His Highness” title
To mark the accession of Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan as the fiftieth hereditary Imam of the Shi’a Ismaili Muslim community, and in accordance with long-standing tradition, it has pleased The King to grant the new Aga Khan the title ‘His Highness.’
It is understood that the designation of the title ‘His Highness’ to the Imam of the Ismailis by the British Monarchs is a reflection of the strong relationship which has existed over time between the families. Initially granted to Aga Khan I in recognition of his role as spiritual head of the Ismaili community and as a religious leader of global importance. This tradition continues and now also recognizes the work of Ismaili Imams in the fields of interfaith dialogue, diplomacy and international statesmanship, education, healthcare, and other forms of socio-economic development which make a hugely positive contribution to communities worldwide.
Pakistan: National Day of Mourning
SKARDU, PAKISTAN – NOVEMBER 03: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales poses with the Aga Khan IV as they tour Altit village on November 03, 2006 in Skardu, Pakistan. This is the sixth day of the Royal Tour of Pakistan. Skardu is a remote area of the Pakistan Himalayas. (Photo by Pool/Getty Images)
The Government of Pakistan declared 8th February, 2025 as the day of national mourning on the occasion of the funeral of Prince Karim Aga Khan. Pakistani flag will remain on half-mast in the country and at Pakistan Missions abroad.
Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, Haji Gulbar Khan, and the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan have announced three days of mourning (February 5 to 7) following the passing of His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan. During this period, the national flag will remain at half-mast on all government buildings across Gilgit-Baltistan.
Additionally, the Chief Minister has declared February 6 as a public holiday in honour of His Highness Aga Khan IV.
Italy: Regional Day of Mourning in Sardinia
Prince Karim Aga Khan (Aga Khan IV) oversees the development of Porto Cervo on the Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, 1960. (Photo by Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
There will be regional mourning tomorrow, February 6, throughout Sardinia: this was decided by President Alessandra Todde, in agreement with the Council, for the death of Prince Karim Aga Khan, honorary citizen of Arzachena and Olbia and creator of the Costa Smeralda.
He has created a virtuous development model for a territory and an entire island.
The Ismaili Prince, the governor continues, “has also invested personally by creating a complete system, providing a territory with strategic infrastructures such as an airport, a port and even an airline, producing development and jobs, including highly qualified ones, without however asking for sumptuous public money, as has happened in other sectors”. A development model, the president concludes, “very distant from the speculation that we have seen in other sectors”.
“Thanks to his extraordinary vision and his great love for the territory, Karim Aga Khan built a tourism model that has become famous throughout the world”. This is the moving message with which the Costa Smeralda Consortium and Smeralda Holding remember the prince, who passed away yesterday in Lisbon at the age of 88. It was he, in the early 1960s, who purchased the land in the area and founded the consortium, officially born on 14 March 1962 to manage, control and protect the territory concerned. A turning point for tourism in Sardinia , which was added to other creations such as the Azzurra boat in the 1980s: “A system that has determined a change in the social and economic development of the entire community, leaving an indelible mark on the history of Arzachena, Gallura and Sardinia as a whole.”
After two days of mourning, this morning the mayor of Olbia, Settimo Nizzi, signed a resolution with the proposal to name the Costa Smeralda airport after Prince Karim Aga Khan IV, who passed away on February 4, at the age of 88.
“We believe it is right to name our airport after His Highness: in the context of an exceptional strategic vision, the Prince founded the all-Sardinian airline in 1963, which later became Meridiana and Air Italy, which has allowed people to reach the island since the beginning of the Costa Smeralda, and gave life to the construction of the airport, today one of the most prestigious international airports,” said Nizzi. And he added: “The Prince represented an extraordinary figure, capable of giving life to the birth and development of the tourism sector in full respect of the environmental protection of the Gallura territory.”
Research, Translation, Insight & Perspective by A. Maherali
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Beautiful Coverage…Merci
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