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An
astonishing sequence of pictures of the final minutes of Princess
Diana's life have emerged as the long-awaited inquest into her death
finally opened today.
The
never-before-seen images, posted on an official website by coroner
Lord Justice Scott Baker, includes the last known photograph of
Diana alive and graphic scenes of the desperate fight to save her
life.
More than
ten years after her death in a high speed crash in Paris they bring
back with startling clarity the fantastic efforts to keep Diana
alive.
The vivid
aftermath of the crash contrasts with what must be the most
extraordinary final snapshots of Diana's last moments.
Taken by
one of the paparazzi, the princess is visible in the rear seat
peering back at the pursuing French photographers. To her side Dodi
Fayed is hunched forward in his seat.
It is
just seconds after the couple have left the back entrance of the
Ritz Hotel on the fatal journey to Dodi's Paris apartment and
provides the last known picture of Diana alive.
But it is
the occupants of the front seat that catch the eye.
Trevor
Rees-Jones, Dodi's bodygaurd and the only survivor of the terrible
accident, holds a protective hand up as he peers into the lens.
Beside him the driver Henri Paul - accused by police of being drunk
- stares twistedly, almost mockingly, at the camera.
In one
picture Dr Frederic Maillez, the first doctor on the scene, can be
clearly seen inside the back of the smashed Mercedes tending to the
critically ill princess.
The
photos also show the shuddering impact of the black limousine after
it collided with pillar 13 - and how the car virtually disintegrated,
such was the force of the collision.
A scene
of desolation and horror is captured in the seconds after the crash.
Passers-by, who included the off-duty Dr Maillez, are seen with
policemen, firemen, and the paparazzi.
Sources
close to Mohamed Al Fayed, who claims his son and Diana were
murdered in an Establishment plot, said the existence of the last
picture of the couple surrounded in the front and the rear by
photographers proved they were pursued to their death by the
paparazzi.
They
denied official claims that the picture had been taken seconds after
the princess and her lover had left the Ritz Hotel and insisted it
was snapped well into their journey.
According
to the website, it will be updated daily throughout the inquest with
exhibits - including photographs - that are shown to the jury.
It will
also contain transcripts, official statements, and details of
procedural decisions.
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