Diana's new romance takes precedence in Brit tabloids

LONDON While Princess Diana sought to highlight the dangers ofland mines by visiting mine victims in Bosnia over the weekend,British newspapers focused on her new romance.

British tabloids reported that Diana has told friends that shehas fallen in love. The man is younger, richer, more exotic and, byall accounts, considerably more fun than Prince Charles, 48. He,too, is an heir, not to the throne, but to Harrods, the departmentstore.

He is Dodi Fayed, 41, film financier, real estate magnate andaficionado of beautiful women around the globe.Diana, 36, was quoted in newspaper stories as telling friendsthat "it's time I started getting a life" and that Fayed "is the manwho will take me out of one world into another. I trust him. Ithink he can provide everything I need."Though Fayed is wealthy, his family has been on the outs withthe British establishment. Fayed's Egyptian-born father, Mohamed,bought Harrods in 1985 only after a battle with the Britishgovernment, which alleged that he and his brothers had "dishonestlyrepresented their origins, their wealth, and their businessinterests." Ever since, though Mohamed Fayed has lived in Britainmore than 30 years, the government has refused to grant him Britishcitizenship, for reasons it never has stated.The princess met Dodi Fayed through his father, who is close tomembers of her family, the Spencers, and they have been acquaintancesfor 10 years.Only in recent days have they been linked romantically,starting with photographs of father, son and princess vacationingaboard the Fayed yacht in the Mediterranean.Britain's Sunday Mirror tabloid splashed a series of pictures ofthe princess cuddling Fayed aboard a boat in the Mediterranean. Inone, the couple appeared to be kissing.But who could say? Although the Sunday Mirror reportedly paid$400,000 for the pictures by an Italian photographer, many were sograiny it was barely possible to make out the two figures.Fayed previously has been linked to Brooke Shields, BrittEkland, actress Valerie Perrine, Tina Sinatra and American modelSuzanne Gregard, to whom Fayed was married for eight months in 1986.His primary business is Allied Stars, which helps finance movies,including "Chariots of Fire" and "Hook."