DistantNews
Support us
🇮🇱 Israel /Culture & Society

Gaza zoo struggles to keep animals alive amid war

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Context piece
  • A Gaza zoo owner moved surviving animals across the Strip during the Israel-Hamas war, reopening in Nuseirat to provide relief for traumatized children.
  • Many animals are malnourished due to shortages of food and medicine, with owners resorting to feeding them frozen meat.
  • The conflict has also traumatized the animals, and some, including lions and ostriches, disappeared or were found as bones after the owner fled Rafah.

In the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, a zoo owner has reopened his facility, hoping to offer a semblance of normalcy and joy to children enduring nearly three years of conflict.

In the beginning of the war, people were looking for a way to survive... and I was looking for a way to save the animals more than saving myself.

— Mahmoud GomaaExplaining his motivation for saving the animals during the conflict.

Mahmoud Gomaa, the zoo's owner, relocated his surviving animals from Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in 2024 as the Israel-Hamas war intensified. He moved the animals from town to town before establishing a new location in Nuseirat earlier this year. "In the beginning of the war, people were looking for a way to survive... and I was looking for a way to save the animals more than saving myself," Gomaa told Reuters.

However, the war's toll is evident. Many animals are malnourished, weakened by severe shortages of food, medicine, and vaccines. Veterinarian Nidal Fadel noted that owners are feeding them frozen meat, which is an "incorrect nutritional plan" as animals in the wild eat fresh prey. The conflict has also directly impacted the animals. When Gomaa fled Rafah, he had to leave behind three lions, several crocodiles, and ostriches. Upon his return months later, he found only the bones of the crocodiles and ostriches, and the lions had vanished.

Owners are currently feeding them frozen meat. This is a wrong nutritional plan because in nature they eat fresh prey.

— Nidal FadelDescribing the inadequate feeding practices for zoo animals due to shortages.

Beyond physical hardship, the animals suffer from the trauma of constant conflict. "Lions can detect sounds and disturbances that humans may not notice," explained veterinarian Amir Khalil, who has led rescue missions in Gaza. "Bombing and constant conflict create enormous stress and fear for them." At the Nuseirat zoo, the surviving lion barely acknowledged visitors, a stark illustration of the war's pervasive impact on all living beings in the Gaza Strip.

Lions can detect sounds and disturbances that humans may not notice. Bombing and constant conflict create enormous stress and fear for them.

— Amir KhalilExplaining the psychological impact of the war on zoo animals.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Jerusalem Post in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog