94-year-old Muhammad Al-Fayed died 26 years after the accident that happened to Diana and Dodi
Mohamed Al Fayed, the former owner of Fulham FC and father of Dodi Al Fayed, who was born in Egypt, died at the age of 94.
Mohammed al-Fayed died in Paris on August 31, 1997, nearly 26 years after the car accident in which his sons Dodi al-Fayed and Princess Diana were killed.
Fulham FC said in a statement that Mrs Mohamed Al Fayed, her children and grandchildren can confirm that her beloved husband, father and grandfather passed away on 30 August 2023.
Muhammad al-Fayed, the owner of the famous Harrods store, was born in Alexandria, his father was a school teacher.
In 1966, he became an adviser to the Sultan of Brunei, one of the richest men in the world. Before that he started his own shipping business. Mohammed Al Fayed moved to the UK with his brother Ali in the 1970s and bought the Paris Ritz Hotel in 1979.
The two brothers bought Harrods from British businessman Roland “Tiny” Rowland for £615 million in 1985.
A government investigation published in 1990 found that Muhammad al-Fayed had lied about his wealth while making attractive offers to buy the store. He called the claims unfair. However, after 5 years, his first application for British citizenship was rejected.
Mohammed al-Fayed was never granted citizenship and was threatened with deportation to France, which awarded him its highest civilian award, the Legion of Honor.
In 2010, Mohamed Alfai sold Harrods to a Qatari fund for £1.5 billion, although it was once reported that he wanted to stay there after death.
He told the Financial Times in 2002 that he wanted his body to be put on display in a glass tomb on the roof of Harrods so people could come and visit him.
In 1997, Muhammad Al Fayed bought Fulham Football Club in West London for £6.25 million, he sold the club to billionaire businessman Shahid Khan in 2013.
Faiz married Finnish socialite and former model Henny Wathan in 1985, with whom he had four children: Jasmin, Karim, Camilla and Omar.
He was involved in a long-running campaign after the deaths of Doudi al-Fayed and Diana, claiming that the incident was not an accident, but was orchestrated by the British security services.
However, French police have concluded that it was an accident caused by speeding and the high blood alcohol content of the driver, Henri Paul.
Dodi al-Fayed became friends with Diana through her sponsorship of charities and events for members of the royal family. Billionaire Dudi’s relationship with the royal family was recently featured in season five of the web series ‘The Crown’.
He established Al Fayed Charitable Foundation in 1987 to improve the lives of poor, traumatized and terminally ill youth.
According to the Forbes list of the world’s billionaires, in November 2022, Muhammad Al-Fayed’s wealth was $1.9 billion.
