When conflict once again struck Lebanon, Mona Khalil made a courageous decision to remain at her cherished coastal residence, dedicated to safeguarding endangered sea turtles.
During the previous clash between Israel and Hezbollah in 2024, the environmental advocate reluctantly left her property in the southern Lebanese village of Al-Mansouri, which also serves as a marine conservation site, seeking refuge in Beirut.
Despite her reluctance to leave her home during the previous war, Khalil chose not to evacuate when the latest conflict escalated in March.
Tragically, she passed away from injuries sustained in an Israeli strike on her residence earlier this month. She was 76 years old.
“She made her own decision,” stated Assad Serhal, a close friend and fellow conservationist of Khalil, speaking to host Nil Köksal on As It Happens. “She wanted to spend her final moments there, and she did.”
‘An Exceptional Individual’
On June 4, Khalil’s house was hit by an Israeli attack. While her assistant, an Ethiopian woman, is recuperating from injuries, Khalil succumbed to her wounds in a Beirut hospital, as reported by The Guardian.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) clarified in a statement that Khalil was not a deliberate target and that no known IDF operation caused her injuries.
The IDF stated that warnings were issued before strikes in the area and expressed deep regret for any harm inflicted on civilians.
Lebanon’s health ministry indicated that over 4,000 individuals have lost their lives in Israeli attacks since the onset of the recent Israel-Hezbollah conflict in March.
Some violence has persisted following a fragile ceasefire established on Saturday.
Khalil, a Nigerian-born individual holding citizenships in Lebanon and the Netherlands, dedicated over 20 years to safeguarding sea turtles along Al-Mansouri’s shoreline.
In 2000, she and her partner, Habiba Fayed, transformed her inherited property into a sanctuary for endangered loggerhead and green sea turtles. They also repurposed her residence, The Orange House, into an ecotourism guesthouse and training center for volunteers monitoring nesting activities along the coast.
Every nesting season, Khalil and volunteers patrolled the beach at night, identifying fresh tracks in the sand and relocating vulnerable nests away from human interference and coastal lighting.
During the summer nesting season, she arranged viewings of sea turtle hatchlings