Egyptian Princess, Murder Victim. Born at the Kubba Palace in Cairo, she was the youngest daughter of Fuad I and Nazli Sabri, and the youngest sister of Farouk I. Her father died when she was six years old and was raised mostly by her mother and her sister Faika. In 1948, she travelled with her sister and her mother to the United States so her mother could undergo kidney surgery. After her mother's surgery, Fathia settled in Los Angeles and in 1950, married Riyad Ghali, their Royal Advisor, who was 11 years her senior, at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, much to the dipleasure of King Farouk, who stripped her of her royal title, confiscated her extensive properties and banned her from Egypt forever. The couple, along with her mother, lived a life of luxury in Beverly Hills, however when the money started to run out, they were forced to sell some of the family jewelry for and live under less luxurious circumstances in Santa Monica and later in an apartment in West Hollywood. In 1973, Fathaya divorced Ghali citing bad investments that caused them to lose everything. That same year, she filed for bankruptcy and was later forced to sell her mother's last remaining jewels to settle outstanding debts. On December 10th, 1976, she went to her ex-husband's house to retrieve some of her mother's clothes. She found Ghali drunk, and not wanting her to leave, he shot her 6 times in the head with a revolver before turning the gun on himself, however he survived and was sentenced to prison, but only served one year before being released due to poor health.
Egyptian Princess, Murder Victim. Born at the Kubba Palace in Cairo, she was the youngest daughter of Fuad I and Nazli Sabri, and the youngest sister of Farouk I. Her father died when she was six years old and was raised mostly by her mother and her sister Faika. In 1948, she travelled with her sister and her mother to the United States so her mother could undergo kidney surgery. After her mother's surgery, Fathia settled in Los Angeles and in 1950, married Riyad Ghali, their Royal Advisor, who was 11 years her senior, at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, much to the dipleasure of King Farouk, who stripped her of her royal title, confiscated her extensive properties and banned her from Egypt forever. The couple, along with her mother, lived a life of luxury in Beverly Hills, however when the money started to run out, they were forced to sell some of the family jewelry for and live under less luxurious circumstances in Santa Monica and later in an apartment in West Hollywood. In 1973, Fathaya divorced Ghali citing bad investments that caused them to lose everything. That same year, she filed for bankruptcy and was later forced to sell her mother's last remaining jewels to settle outstanding debts. On December 10th, 1976, she went to her ex-husband's house to retrieve some of her mother's clothes. She found Ghali drunk, and not wanting her to leave, he shot her 6 times in the head with a revolver before turning the gun on himself, however he survived and was sentenced to prison, but only served one year before being released due to poor health.
Bio by: Louis du Mort
Family Members
Advertisement
See more Ghali memorials in:
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
