Lebanese Activist Killed
Lebanese Sea Turtle Advocate Mona Khalil Dies from Airstrike Injuries
Key Points
Khalil died after being moved to an intensive-care unit in Beirut; her assistant—described as an Ethiopian woman—also suffered burns in the Israeli strike but was reportedly recovering (as friends said Khalil succumbed after ICU treatment).
Khalil painted her house orange to match the Netherlands’ national color after relocating there during the Lebanese civil war—something she said reflected the refuge she found while abroad.
Her sanctuary experience included not just turtle monitoring and eco-tourism stays, but also a lived-in home setting: visitors who gained permission could stay in a flower-lined courtyard that was “often filled with rescued dogs and cats.”
Lebanon’s conservation community publicly mourned her with specific tributes: Live Love Tyre said, “She will be remembered through an incredible legacy… Mona chose to stay and care for the turtles,” and volunteer journalist Fadia Joumaa wrote, “She guarded life faithfully,” while also describing the loss as for Lebanon as a whole.
Mona Khalil, a 76-year-old Lebanese marine ecologist who spent 25 years guarding sea turtle nests on a southern Lebanon beach, has died from injuries suffered in an Israeli airstrike. An Israeli strike hit her home and sanctuary in al-Mansouri, about 10 kilometers south of Tyre, on June 4, according to BBC. She died on June 19 at the American University of Beirut Medical Center.
Khalil founded the Orange House Project in 2000, turning a family farmhouse into an eco-tourism hub that protected a 1.4-kilometer nesting beach for endangered loggerhead and green sea turtles. The Guardian reported that her Ethiopian assistant survived the strike with burns and was recovering. Friends confirmed Khalil succumbed after days of ICU treatment.
A 25-Year Mission Ended by a Single Strike
Khalil's journey began in 1999 when she watched a turtle come ashore at al-Mansouri beach to lay eggs. That moment changed her life. She launched the Orange House Project the following year, after Israel withdrew from South Lebanon, according to The New Arab. Over 25 years, the site grew into one of the eastern Mediterranean's most important turtle nesting grounds, hosting more than 58 endangered turtle nests each season.
She campaigned against plastic pollution, illegal construction, harmful fishing, and light pollution that threatened the turtles. Visitors who gained permission could stay in a flower-lined courtyard, according to BBC, often shared with rescued dogs and cats. The eco-tourism income directly funded beach cleaning and nest protection — a fully self-funded conservation model.
The Orange House Survives Wars — Until Now
The sanctuary sat in land repeatedly caught in conflict. During the 2006 war, an Israeli bomb previously damaged the house, but Khalil stayed. That year, the beach recorded a record 79 turtle nests — likely because the fighting kept people away, according to L'Orient Today. She painted the house bright orange as a tribute to the Netherlands, where she had lived as an art restorer during Lebanon's civil war.
The June 4 strike hit the side of the house containing Khalil's bedroom, according to L'Orient Today. She was rushed to Jabal Amel Hospital in critical condition, with social media calls circulating for O-negative blood donors. She was later moved to the ICU in Beirut. The IDF has not given a specific reason for striking the site. The Green Southerners group said the location was well-known for conservation and posed no military threat, according to 24 News HD.
Conservation Community Mourns a 'Guardian of the Turtles'
Tributes poured in from Lebanon's environmental groups on June 20. The Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon said: "Mona was one of those rare individuals whose life, spirit, and daily existence became inseparable from the cause she dedicated herself to." Live Love Tyre wrote: "She will be remembered through an incredible legacy… Mona chose to stay and care for the turtles." Journalist Fadia Joumaa, who worked closely with Khalil, wrote simply: "She guarded life faithfully."
Julien Jreissati, Program Director at Greenpeace Middle East and North Africa, called her death a profound loss for the regional environmental movement, according to Yahoo News. Her death came on a day when at least 47 people were killed in Israeli strikes across Lebanon, according to BBC. The future of the Orange House Project is now uncertain, with immediate concerns about illegal construction and the loss of turtle nest monitoring on the beach.
What Her Death Means for the Turtles She Protected
Without Khalil's leadership and the income from guest stays, the 1.4-kilometer nesting beach now faces real danger. Threats include sand theft, illegal construction, and the end of regular nest monitoring, according to The New Arab. The broader coastline she helped protect — a 7-kilometer stretch in partnership with conservation groups — also faces damage from ongoing bombardment, including chemical runoff harming coastal ecosystems.
Khalil was born in Lagos, Nigeria in 1949 to Lebanese parents and returned to Lebanon in 1999 after years abroad. She was 76 when she died. For colleagues, her choice to stay in a war zone for the turtles defined her entirely. "Mona chose to stay," Live Love Tyre said. That choice ultimately cost her her life.
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