For over twenty years he has watched over the beaches of southern Lebanon, protecting the nests of sea turtles threatened by pollution, urbanization and human indifference. Now Mona Khalil, marine ecologist and tireless defender of biodiversity, is no longer with us.
The 77-year-old woman died from serious injuries sustained after an Israeli attack hit her home near Tyre, southern Lebanon.
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With deep sadness we mourn the passing of Mona Khalil today, wrote the environmental association Live Love Tire in a message published on social media. He leaves an incredible legacy. Despite everything, he chose to stay and continue to take care of our turtles. His was a life spent for others and for the common good.
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A life dedicated to sea turtles
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, in 1949, Mona Khalil had lived abroad for several years before moving permanently to southern Lebanon. The turning point came in 1999, when he witnessed a scene destined to change his existence forever: a sea turtle emerged from the waters of the Mediterranean to lay its eggs on the beach of Al Mansouri, not far from Tyre.
That fleeting meeting turned into a life mission. Since then, Khalil has dedicated himself body and soul to the protection of the nesting areas of the Caretta caretta turtles and green turtles, two symbolic species of the eastern Mediterranean that are now increasingly threatened.
What puts their survival at risk are above all the construction expansion along the coasts, plastic pollution, fishing nets and light pollution, factors that compromise the reproduction and orientation of the animals.
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The Orange House and the defense of the Lebanese coast
In 2000 he contributed to the birth of the Orange House, an ecotourism project on Al Mansouri beach which over the years has become a point of reference for environmental conservation and ecological education. From there he coordinated nest monitoring activities, awareness programs and initiatives to document the marine biodiversity of southern Lebanon. His voice was raised several times against the pollution of the coasts and against the progressive destruction of natural habitats.
For many volunteers and activists he represented a guide, a constant presence and an example of absolute dedication.
You left us, but you continue to live within us, we who are your children”, wrote the journalist and volunteer Fadia Joumaa, who worked alongside her for years. Your passing is a loss for all of Lebanon, not just for us. It is a loss for the whole life that you have cherished with such faithfulness.
Mona Khalil’s death also tells another story, that of the often invisible victims of conflicts: ecosystems, biodiversity and the people who dedicate their existence to their protection.
In an already fragile territory, where sea turtles struggle every year to survive among concrete, waste and climate change, the passing of a figure like Khalil leaves a huge void, but also a precious legacy: the awareness that the defense of nature is not an extraordinary gesture reserved for a few, but rather a daily act of care and responsibility.
For over two decades Mona Khalil has chosen to remain close to her turtles. Today those same beaches continue to preserve the traces of his work and his stubborn hope.
