The information was confirmed Monday evening, January 29, by the editorial director of the conservative magazine Valeurs nationaux, Tugdual Denis: its owner, the Franco-Lebanese Iskandar Safa died, Monday evening, at the age of 68, following a cancer in Mougins (Alpes-Maritimes). He “left with the dignity of the knight that he was,” said the press boss.
Iskandar Safa was the owner of the securities of the Valmonde group, of which Valeurs Actuelles is a part. He was also at the head of a real estate and hotel business in the South of France, while having specialized in shipbuilding and armaments over the years. 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. 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 a candidate for the takeover of the Nice-Matin group. His fortune was estimated at one billion euros a few years ago.