English peer who financed escape for Syrian Christian refugees dead at 96

January 20, 2016

Lord Weidenfeld, the Austrian-born Jew and British peer who financed an ambitious effort to save Christians from the Islamic State, has died at the age of 96.

Lord Weidenfeld, who fled from his native country to escape the Nazi regime, paid for Operation Safe Havens, which flew 150 Christians from Syria to Poland, and offered support for thousands of other Christian refugees. Lord Weidenfeld explained: "I had a debt to pay."

The founder of the Weidenfeld & Nicolson publishing house-- now known as Hachette UK-- had brought out works by Isaiah Berlin, Vladimir Nabokov, and and the memoirs of St. John Paul II. He was knighted in 1969 for his philanthropic works. 

 

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Further information:

• Lord Weidenfeld, Jewish peer who funded operation to rescue Christians from ISIS, has died