Princes William and Harry back Diana inquest verdict
Diana, Princess of Wales, died 11 years ago
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Tuesday, 08, Apr 2008 09:26
Princes William and Harry have said they "agree" with the verdict returned by jurors in the inquest into their mother Princess Diana's deaths yesterday.
Diana's sons, who were aged 15 and 12 respectively when their mother was killed in a Paris car crash on August 31st 1997, issued a statement late last night in response to the inquest's verdict.
Click here to read the key quotes during the six-month inquest
The six women and five men on the jury concluded, with a majority of nine, that Diana and Dodi al-Fayed died as a result of unlawfully killing, blamed on the chasing paparazzi and French chauffeur Henri Paul.
Click here for a timeline of the key events of the Diana inquest
Late yesterday they were thanked by the princes, who said in a statement they were grateful for the "thorough way" the evidence had been considered in the six-month inquest.
"We agree with their verdicts, and are both hugely grateful to each and every one of them for the forbearance they have shown in accepting such significant disruption to their lives over the past six months," they said.
The coroner, Lord Justice Scott Baker, was thanked for his "unfailing courtesy" while those who came forward to give evidence received gratitude for "reawakening their painful and personal memories" as a result.
The princes hope allegations made by Mr al-Fayed's father, Mohamed al-Fayed, that their grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh was linked to a conspiracy to murder the princess will now be laid to rest.
During the inquest Mr al-Fayed called the Duke a "Nazi" and a "racist" and last night appeared to reject the verdict, which "disappointed" his team.
Experts are now pondering the inquest's significance. Sir Richard Mottram, former head of the joint intelligence committee, told Channel 4 News last night he believed the intelligence services had been completely cleared of any wrongdoing.
And Lord Archer of Sandwell, a former solicitor-general, said it was inevitable the inquest had been such a "long and expensive" job amid criticism it has cost the taxpayer £10 million.
William and Harry's focus remains on the death of their mother, however.
Their statement concluded: "Finally, the two of us would like to express our most profound gratitude to all those who fought so desperately to save our mother's life on that tragic night."