Diana inquest finally set to open in London

LONDON: The inquest into the car crash death a decade ago of Princess Diana was finally set to open in London on Tuesday, amid hopes it will put claims of a British establishment murder plot to rest.

Lord Justice Scott Baker and an 11-person jury are expected to spend up to six months at the High Court in London considering evidence surrounding the deaths of Diana and her Egyptian partner Dodi Fayed in a Paris road tunnel in August 1997.

The double inquest -- legally required when a British citizen dies an unnatural death abroad and the body is repatriated -- has a narrow remit, seeking only the identity of the deceased, plus how, when and where they died.

No blame is determined at inquests and the verdict must not identify anyone as having criminal or civil liability.

Possible verdicts include natural causes, accident, suicide, unlawful or lawful killing or industrial disease.

The inquest may also produce an open verdict if there is insufficient evidence to reach a conclusion.

Diana, 36, Dodi Fayed, 42, and their chauffeur Henri Paul, 41, were killed on August 31, 1997. Their Mercedes hit an underpass pillar soon after speeding away from the Hotel Ritz, owned by Fayed's father Mohamed Al Fayed.

Diana's bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was the only survivor, but suffered serious injuries.

The inquest, which briefly opened in January 2004, will examine the embalming of Diana's body, her post-mortem, the hours before the crash, suggestions she was engaged to Fayed, the alleged purchase of a ring, claims she was pregnant and bodyguards' evidence.