The weekly Current Values cries its owner. Franco-Lebanese shipyard magnate Iskandar Safa has died, the managing director of this far-right publication announced on Monday.
“We are devastated this evening to inform you of the death of our owner, Iskandar Safa. Left with the dignity of the knight he was. May God bless his soul and protect his family, who meant so much to him,” wrote Tugdual Denis on the social network X.
One of the hostage negotiators in Lebanon
“A warrior to the end, he has faced a serious illness in recent months but it has taken a toll on his courage. He died, standing, on January 29, 2024, in Mougins, surrounded by the warmth of his family,” specifies a press release written by the editorial staff of the weekly and published on its website.
Born in 1955 into a Christian family, the businessman was one of the negotiators for the release in 1988 of French hostages in Lebanon. He became known to the general public in 1992 by buying the Normandy mechanical construction sites.
Candidate for the takeover of the Nice-Matin group
Very secret, Iskandar Safa controlled shipyards in Cherbourg (CNM), in Greece, in Abu Dhabi and north of Hamburg in Germany (GNYK for large military ships and Nobiskrug, from which the largest sailing yacht came out in 2017 of the world). It had six major national navies as clients. In 2019, he was also a candidate for the takeover of the group Nice morning.
His fortune and that of his brother Akram amounted to 1.45 billion euros, according to the magazine Challenges in 2023.