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A picture of “Mohamed Al-Fayed” in 2015
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Mohamed Al-Fayed, former Harrods chairman whose son Dodi was killed in a car crash alongside Princess Diana, Princess of Wales, has died at the age of 94.
Born in Egypt, Al-Fayed built a business empire in the Middle East before moving to the United Kingdom in the 1970s.
However, he never achieved his ambition of obtaining a British passport, and spent his later years wondering about the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Dodi and Diana.
Al-Fayed has remained largely out of the limelight over the past decade, living in his mansion with his wife. In a statement issued on Friday, his family said: “Mrs. Al-Fayed, her children and grandchildren would like to confirm that her beloved husband, their father and grandfather Mohammed, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, August 30, 2023. He had a long and enjoyable retirement and was surrounded by his loved ones.”
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Harrods was sold to Qatar in 2010, and Al-Fayed remained honorary president for six months.
Fulham Football Club, which was owned by Al-Fayed for many years, said it was “deeply saddened” when it learned of his death.
“We owe a debt of gratitude to Mohammed for what he has done for our club, and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time,” the statement read. His successor at the club, Shahid Khan, expressed his sincere condolences.
“The story of Fulham cannot be told without mentioning the positive influence of Mr Al Fayed as president,” he said.
He adds, “We will remember his legacy after our promotion to the English Premier League, and the European League final.” Khan said Al Fayed was “wise, versatile and committed to Fulham” and that his legacy “will always be at the heart of our traditions”.
Mr. Al-Fayed rose from selling soft drinks on the streets of his hometown of Alexandria, Egypt, to becoming a big name in the business.
Al-Fayed met his first wife, Samira Khashoggi, the sister of the multi-millionaire Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, who hired him at his importing company in Saudi Arabia.
This site helped him form new relationships in Egypt, and although the marriage did not last for more than two years, Mr. Al-Fayed went on to launch his shipping company.
In 1966, he became an advisor to one of the richest men in the world, the Sultan of Brunei.
He moved to Britain in 1974 and five years later bought the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Paris with his brother Ali for 20 million pounds sterling.
They then acquired Harrods in 1985 for £615m, after a fierce bidding war with mining giant Lonru.
Under his ownership, Fulham FC rose from the Third Division to the English Premier League.
Al-Fayed donated a large sum to charities including Great Ormond Street Hospital and, as a father of five, showed a special interest in helping sick children.
He established the Al-Fayed Charitable Foundation in 1987 to improve the lives of poor, traumatized and sick youth.
And from the “Ritz-Carlton” in Paris, his son Dodi, a film producer, and his then partner Diana, Princess of Wales, left before the car accident that took their lives in 1997.
Al-Fayed never recovered from the shock of the accident, and became obsessed with speculation surrounding the circumstances of his death.
His evidence at the investigation in February 2008 included allegations that the incident was on orders from Prince Philip and with the complicity of the British Secret Service.
It was deemed a “conspiracy theory” by the coroner and rejected by the jury.
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Al-Fayed with his wife Henie at Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997
Al-Fayed twice failed in his attempt to obtain British citizenship, and the second time in 1995, infuriated by the refusal, he told the press that he had paid two Conservative ministers, Neil Hamilton and Tim Smith, to ask questions in the House of Commons on the matter. .
Both left the government, and Hamilton, who denied the allegation, lost a defamation case against Al-Fayed.
A third politician, Jonathan Aitken, then a cabinet minister, also resigned after al-Fayed revealed that he had stayed for free at the Ritz-Carlton in Paris at the same time as a group of Saudi arms dealers.
In 2010, Al-Fayed sold Harrods to Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, and nearly half of the purchase price was used to pay down the company’s debts.
2023-09-01 23:43:55
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