MohamedAL FAYEDthe Egyptian billionaire, former owner of Harrods, and father of Dodi Fayed, has died at the age of 94, according to reports.
He was buried after Friday prayers following a service at Regent’s Park Mosque in London, reported Al Jazeera Egypt. His death is believed to have come exactly 26 years after that of his eldest son, Dodi, and Princess Diana.
Al Shorouk newspaper reported that Ashraf Haider, a member of his family, wrote: "My wife’s grandfather, the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, has died. We belong to God and to Him we shall return."
And Fulham Focus, a podcast created by fans of the football club, wrote: "Very sad to relate that reports from Egypt state that former Fulham owner & Chairman Mohamed Al Fayed has passed at the age of 94.
In the 1990s, Al Fayed was one of the richest people in the world, with an impressive list of businesses and property to his name. As the owner of luxury department store Harrods and his involvement with high-profile charities brought him into the same circles as the royal family, including Princess Diana.
His eldest son, Dodi, was friends with the royal for about a decade before romance blossomed during a yacht holiday in the south of France. However they were denied the opportunity to spend their lives together, dying side-by-side in a car crash in Paris.
In the past few decades, Mr Al Fayed sold off several of his high-profile businesses. Back in 2010, he sold Harrods to Qatar for a staggering $2.4billion. While he said he would never part ways with his beloved department store, it was a row over dividends and pension funds which finally showed him it was time to say goodbye.
Three years later, in 2013, he also said goodbye to Fulham Football Club, which he sold to billionaire Shahid Khan for $300m. However he remained the proud owner of the famous Ritz Paris Hotel, regarded by many as the most beautiful in the world. In 2016 it underwent a massive refurbishment.
Earlier this year, his wealth was estimated at $2billion (roughly £1.58million), ranking at number 1,493 globally. And in May last year, Forbes listed his wealth at $1.9billion - which is about £1.6billion.
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