Mona Khalil, a Lebanese conservationist who built a decades-long movement to protect endangered sea turtles along southern Lebanon's Mediterranean coast, died Friday after an Israeli airstrike struck her beachside home two weeks ago. She was 76.
According to NPR, Khalil died at her home near the city of Tyre, a structure known as the Orange House for its location just steps from al-Mansouri beach. Her Ethiopian housekeeper, the only other occupant at the time, sustained less severe injuries. The two women were alone in the home when the strike hit.
The Israeli military said last week in response to an NPR query that it had no indication it had hit the house and was reviewing its records. It did not respond to a follow-up query about when that review might be completed.
Israel has been conducting military operations in southern Lebanon targeting what it describes as Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure. The Lebanese health ministry says more than 4,000 people have been killed since the war began on March 2, including at least 600 women and children. Israel says 35 soldiers and a military contractor along with two civilians have been killed in Hezbollah attacks.
Fadia Joumaa, a former volunteer who has taken over the turtle conservation effort, said Khalil had refused to leave during the fighting. Khalil believed she was safe because she was a civilian and there were no nearby military targets.
Khalil's introduction to the turtles came roughly 25 years ago on the beach, when a female turtle laying eggs threw sand over her while she was drinking a beer. She then reached out to European turtle protection organizations to learn everything she could about the creatures, according to NPR. She began monitoring nests, collecting data, and training volunteers to protect the eggs from predators and human interference.
Rami Khachab, a 32-year-old herpetologist originally from al-Mansouri, said he began volunteering in high school, walking beaches with Khalil before dawn to search for turtle nests.
The work was urgent. Newly hatched sea turtles have roughly a 1 in 1,000 chance of surviving to adulthood because of human encroachment, ocean trash, and predators that eat eggs and hatchlings. Khalil's volunteers located clutches of eggs laid at night, covered them with wire mesh for protection, and guided the hatchlings to the water.
"Through the Orange House, she inspired generations of Lebanese to value and protect their natural heritage and coastal ecosystems. Her work made her one of Lebanon's most respected voices for marine conservation," Khachab said.
