Aga Khan arrives on Parliament Hill, is to address House of Commons

By The Canadian Press
February 27 2014 07:05 AM

CP27387943 — The Aga Khan (centre) is meet by Stephen Harper Prime Minister of Canada (right) and his wife Laureen (left)on Parliament in Ottawa, Thursday February 27, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Chartrand

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Stephen Harper is welcoming the Aga Khan to Parliament Hill.

The 77-year-old Aga Khan is hereditary spiritual leader of the world’s 15 million Shia Ismaili Muslims.

After Harper’s formal greeting, the religious leader will have a private meeting with the prime minister, and is scheduled to speak in the House of Commons.

The Aga Khan is a regular visitor to Canada, with his most recent trips coming in 2008 and 2010.

He was granted honorary Canadian citizenship during the 2010 visit.

The Aga Khan became the 49th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims in 1957, when he succeeded his grandfather.

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