Mohamed Fayed takes the stand at Diana inquest

Mohamed Fayed declared today that Diana, Princess of Wales and his son Dodi Fayed were "murdered", as he gave evidence at their inquest.

It was among the first words he told the jury at the central London hearing.

He began by stating he would "make no allegations" and said he was simply declaring his beliefs about how the couple died.

But then he immediately told the court: "Princess Diana also told me personally before and during the holiday we shared in July 1997 of her fears.

"She told me that she knew Prince Philip and Prince Charles were trying to get rid of her."

Mr Fayed insists the Paris car crash that killed Dodi, Diana and their driver, Henri Paul, on August 31, 1997 was the work of MI6 at the behest of the Duke of Edinburgh.

He claims that Diana was killed because she was pregnant with Dodi's child and about to become engaged to his son.

The Harrods boss also believes the Establishment could not accept an Egyptian Muslim as a stepfather to the future King of England.

Mr Fayed branded Philip a "Nazi" and a "racist" and said: "It's time to send him back to Germany from where he comes."

"You want to know his original name - it ends with Frankenstein."

Ian Burnett QC, for the coroner, commenting on Mr Fayed's remarks, said: "This stems from your belief that Prince Philip is not only a racist but a Nazi as well."

Mr Fayed also raised concerns about a message - dubbed the Mishcon note - written by Diana's divorce lawyer Lord Mishcon after an October 1995 meeting outlining her fears that there was a plot to kill her in a car crash.

In the strictest of confidence Lord Mishcon passed it on to police following a meeting with the then Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Condon after the Princess's death.

It was only when Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, produced a note from the Princess making very similar allegations in the Daily Mirror in October 2003, while Sir John Stevens was head of the Met, that the police agreed to hand over the Mishcon note.

It was sent to the coroner in December 2003.

Reading from a statement, Mr Fayed said: "My belief that my son and Princess Diana were murdered was confirmed when I learned that the two leading Commissioners - Lord Condon and Lord Stevens - did not show the coroner the note made by a leading lawyer, Lord Mishcon, detailing the Princess' fears for her life."

He added: "I cannot believe that they sat upon such an important note and did not pass it on to the (examining French Magistrate) Judge Stephan in Paris and (the then coroner) Michael Burgess.

"I believe that they acted unprofessionally and they must have no conscience."

The Harrods boss described the note as "devastating" and said it explained Diana's fears in "black and white".

Mr Fayed told the inquest jury that Diana herself had told him she was pregnant in a phone call.

"Diana told me on the telephone that she was pregnant. I'm the only person they told.