NEW YORK: Princess Ashraf Pahlavi, the twin sister of Iran’s last shah, died in Monte Carlo on Thursday at the age of 96, her nephew announce on Saturday. She had long suffered from Alzheimer’s disease.

Iranian media confirmed the death, with several outlets posting unflattering accounts of her private life alongside details of official posts she held under her brother’s rule.

She was a trailblazer for women’s rights who lived an opulent life that was never far from controversy.

Born in Tehran, she was considered a powerful force behind her brother and a sometimes fierce critic of him in private, playing an important role in domestic and international politics.

The Islamic revolution of 1979 that toppled Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi transformed Iran and meant the princess never returned, a fact she had reflected on in her final days, her nephew, the Shah’s son, said.

“She was thinking about Iran till the very last moments of her life, and she passed away with hopes for her homeland’s liberation,” wrote Reza Pahlavi in a Facebook tribute.

Three-times married, the princess is survived by a son, Prince Shahram, five grandchildren and several great grandchildren.

From exile she supported cultural, literary and artistic heritage projects that aimed to restore what she saw as their near desecration by Iran’s revolutionary rulers.

In the royal era, the princess was regarded as a talented diplomat, leading Iran’s delegation to the United Nations General Assembly for more than a decade.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2016