RIP: Billionaire Mogul Mohamed Al-Fayed Passes Away At 94

RIP: Billionaire Mogul Mohamed Al-Fayed Passes Away At 94

London, September 1, 2023 – Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, the former proprietor of Harrods department store, Fulham football club, and father of Dodi Fayed, who tragically lost his life alongside Princess Diana in a 1997 car accident, peacefully passed away in London at the age of 94 on Friday, September 1.

His final rites were conducted after Friday prayers, following a solemn service at Regent’s Park Mosque in London, as reported by Al Jazeera Egypt.

Ashraf Haider, a family member, shared the news, stating, “My wife’s grandfather, the prominent Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, has departed from this world. 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 and went on to amass immense wealth through his ventures. In 1954, he wed Samira Khashoggi, with whom he had a son, Emad, affectionately known as Dodi. The couple parted ways in 1956.

Al-Fayed gained international recognition as the proprietor of Harrods, a renowned British institution, which he acquired in 1985 and later sold to Qatar in 2010 for a staggering $2.4 billion. He also held ownership of the illustrious Ritz Paris Hotel and Fulham Football Club.

In 2013, Al Fayed made headlines by selling Fulham Football Club to US auto parts tycoon Shahid Khan for a reported sum of $300 million.

The heartrending chapter of Al-Fayed’s life unfolded with the tragic passing of his eldest son, Dodi, and Princess Diana, in a fateful car accident in Paris. The couple, whose love blossomed during a yacht holiday in the south of France, was denied the chance to build a life together.

Throughout his life, Mohamed Al-Fayed remained a vocal critic of the British royal family, persistently believing that they played a role in the untimely demise of his son Dodi and Princess Diana in the harrowing 1997 car crash. In an interview with 60 Minutes Australia, he articulated his conviction that the couple met their fate intentionally due to societal prejudices. “They still don’t accept that Dodi, my son, an Egyptian, a Muslim, can be the stepfather of the future king,” he firmly asserted.