Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, renowned for his ownership of Harrods department store, Fulham football club, and his association as the father of Dodi Fayed, who tragically lost his life alongside Princess Diana in a fatal car accident in 1997, passed away on Friday, September 1, in London at the age of 94.
According to The Guardian, he was laid to rest following Friday prayers, with a service at Regent’s Park Mosque in London, as reported by Al Jazeera Egypt.
Ashraf Haider, a family member, shared the news in Al Shorouk newspaper, stating, “My wife’s grandfather, the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, has passed away.
We belong to God, and to Him, we shall return.”
Born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1929, Mohamed Al-Fayed relocated to the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s, where he established his wealth through diverse business ventures.
In 1954, he married Samira Khashoggi, and their marriage resulted in one son, Emad, also known as Dodi. However, the couple separated in 1956.
One of Al-Fayed’s most notable holdings was Harrods, which he acquired in 1985 and later sold to Qatar in 2010 for a remarkable $2.4 billion.
Additionally, he had ownership of the Ritz Paris Hotel and Fulham Football Club.
In 2013, Al Fayed sold Fulham Football Club to American auto parts magnate Shahid Khan for a reported $300 million.
His eldest son, Dodi, shared a long-standing friendship with Princess Diana before their romantic relationship developed during a yacht excursion in the south of France.
Tragically, their lives were cut short in a fatal car crash in Paris, preventing them from realizing their future together.
Throughout his life, Al-Fayed remained an outspoken critic of the British royal family, firmly believing that they played a role in the deaths of his son Dodi and Princess Diana in the 1997 car accident.
In an interview with 60 Minutes Australia, he expressed his conviction that the couple was intentionally killed due to societal prejudices, stating, “because they still don’t accept that Dodi, my son, an Egyptian, a Muslim, can be the stepfather of the future king.”
