Lord Alliance passes away at 93
A renowned philanthropist, the Jewish peer was instrumental in the rescue of Ethiopian Jews to Israel
Lord Alliance has passed away at the age of 93, with the S&P Sephardi community mourning the “deeply loved and admired” Jewish peer.
In a message sent on Friday afternoon, the S&P expressed its regret to have to inform members of “the passing of Lord David Alliance CBE.
“We send our deepest condolences to his wife Lady Homa Alliance; children Graham Alliance, Sara Esterkin and Joshua Alliance; siblings Tella Jebreel, Nigel Alliance OBE and Moshe Alliance.
“He was deeply loved and admired by so many in our community and globally. His loss will be profoundly felt by us all.”
“We wish all the family a long life free from further sorrow.”
David Alliance was born in the Iranian city of Kashan in 1932. His father was in the wool and linen industry, and apprenticed him at age 13 into the grand bazaar in Tehran. At the age of 18, he travelled to Manchester, then still the centre of a thriving textile trade.
As described in his 2015 autobiography, A Bazaar Life, “six years later he bought a loss-making textile mill, turned it around in six months and went on to build the biggest textile company in the Western world. At one stage his businesses, including his mail-order company, N Brown Group, employed more than 80,000 people.”
Knighted in 1989, he was elevated to the Peerage in 2004, where he took the Liberal Democrat whip.
Known for his significant philanthropy, Lord Alliance was also directly involved in successful efforts to help rescue Ethiopian Jews and bring them to Israel, negotiating directly with the then-dictator of Ethiopia, Mengistu Haile Mariam.
An Iranian studies centre at Tel Aviv University is named for Alliance. Additionally, the Manchester Business School was renamed the Alliance Manchester Business School a decade ago, honouring the longstanding relationship between the Alliance Family foundation and the educational centre.
The funeral is understood to be taking place in Israel.
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