Princess Diana’s relationship with former Harrods owner, Mohamed Al Fayed, was well-documented as they were often seen together at public events over several years. This association took on a tragic dimension when Diana died in a car crash in Paris in 1997, along with Mohamed’s eldest son, Dodi.
The late Egyptian billionaire’s connection to one of the world’s most iconic women has recently returned to the spotlight after 20 female ex-employees of the London department store alleged assault and physical violence against him. Given their mother’s tragic link to the Al Fayed family, a top Royal expert considers how Princes William and Harry might be reacting to these recent developments.
Former BBC Royal correspondent Jennie Bond said: “I’m sure they both will have been as horrified as the rest of the world. We don’t know much about their feelings about Mohamed Al Fayed… or indeed Dodi.
“William has never spoken about either, but Harry wrote in his book about his mother’s ‘friend’. He said that as long as their mother was happy, they had no problem with him,” reports OK!.
Reflecting on Prince Harry‘s revelations in his memoir ‘Spare’ about the gifts from Mohamed Al Fayed, Jennie Bond shared: “Harry said both he and William were very impressed by laser pens from Harrods given to them by Mohamed. He wrote: ‘He was the father of mummy’s boyfriend, so maybe he was trying to win us over. If so, job done. We thought those lasers were genius. We whipped them around like lightsabers. I think they will now both be disgusted by the allegations, and by the memory of Mohamed Al Fayed cosying up to their mother and hoping his son would marry her.”
The bombshell dropped as over 20 female former employees emerged with harrowing tales of assault and physical violence at the hands of Al-Fayed in properties across London and Paris. Shockingly, five women alleged rapes by Mr Al-Fayed who passed away last year aged 94.
During a gripping press conference conducted by the lawyers representing his supposed victims, illustrious Barrister Dean Armstrong KC spoke out against Al-Fayed. He portrayed him as a “serial sexual abuser” whose depravities were “constant and repetitive” across a staggering 25 years.
In chilling terms, Armstrong expressed: “I have many years of practice… I have never seen a case as horrific as this,” he emphasized at the media gathering. He equated the gravity of these claims to infamous predators Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. Savile because in this case, as in that, the institution, we say, knew about the behaviour”, Mr Armstrong continued. Epstein because in that case, as in this, there was a procurement system in place to source the women and girls
During a gripping press conference conducted by the lawyers representing his supposed victims, illustrious Barrister Dean Armstrong KC spoke out against Al-Fayed. He portrayed him as a “serial sexual abuser” whose depravities were “constant and repetitive” across a staggering 25 years.
In chilling terms, Armstrong expressed: “I have many years of practice… I have never seen a case as horrific as this,” he emphasized at the media gathering. He equated the gravity of these claims to infamous predators Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein.
“Savile because in this case, as in that, the institution, we say, knew about the behaviour, Epstein because in that case, as in this, there was a procurement system in place to source the women and girls. As you know, there are some very young victims. And Weinstein, because it was a person at the very top of the organisation who was abusing his power. We will say plainly, Mohammed Al Fayed was a monster.”
A Harrods spokesperson said: “We are utterly appalled by the allegations of abuse perpetrated by Mohamed Al Fayed.
“These were the actions of an individual who was intent on abusing his power wherever he operated and we condemn them in the strongest terms. We also acknowledge that during this time his victims were failed and for this we sincerely apologise. We are doing everything we can to fix this. The Harrods of today is a very different organisation to the one owned and controlled by Al Fayed between 1985 and 2010, it is one that seeks to put the welfare of our employees at the heart of everything we do.
“This is why, since new information came to light in 2023 about historic allegations of sexual abuse by Al Fayed, it has been our priority to settle claims in the quickest way possible, avoiding lengthy legal proceedings for the women involved. This process is still available for any current or former Harrods employees. While we cannot undo the past, we have been determined to do the right thing as an organisation, driven by the values we hold today, while ensuring that such behaviour can never be repeated in the future.”
