Threat of rockets deters livestock shippers but not Beirut cat rescuers
STRAIT OF HORMUZ, BEIRUT––Crisis situations involving animals and war were just behind the headlines in New York City’s two most prestigious newspapers on the morning of Friday the 13th of March 2026, without animals ever being mentioned.
Bombing in Lebanon brought disaster to both humans and animals, including the tens of thousands of cats who are both the most popular pets and most prolific street animals in the war zone.
Fighting over the Strait of Hormuz dividing Iran from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates meanwhile bought tens of thousands of cattle and sheep in Australia, South Africa, Kenya, Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina a temporary reprieve from shipment to slaughter––even during Ramadan, the month of the haj Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, extending from February 17 to March 19, 2026.
Shipments from Kenya alone are down to 5% of normal, Vincent Mumo Nzilani reported for Reuters on March 13, 2026.
Taking no chances
The most profitable time for livestock shippers to the Middle East each year comes in anticipation of the Eid, the Feast of Atonement, bringing the annual peak of animal slaughter in the Islamic world, when Muslim heads of household often either slaughter cattle and sheep themselves, distributing the meat to family and the poor, or make gifts to charity typically including gifts of meat.
Ahead of the Eid each year, livestock traders in cattle and sheep exporting nations muster animals at their docks. This year, though, most of those animals remain in holding pens––or still on farms, as cattle transporters delay loading and sailing.
Lebanese ports and slaughterhouses are among the frequent recipients of pre-Ramadan cattle and sheep shipments. Many of those animals, and some of the meat from them, is trucked into Syria. But that will not be happening this year, certainly not on the usual scale.
Bombing in Beirut city center
“Good morning,” began Sam Shifton of the New York Times on March 13, 2026. “Israel is striking Beirut’s city center, targeting Hezbollah in neighborhoods once considered safe,” including the immediate vicinity of Animals Lebanon, the oldest and most influential of the multiple humane societies and rescues in Lebanon.
Hours earlier, Sune Engel Rasmussen and Benoit Faucon of the Wall Street Journal noted that, “Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei,” son of the previous supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, killed on February 28, 2026 by an Israeli air strike, “sounded a defiant tone in a statement that appeared in Iranian state media.
“Khamenei, in his first address since he was appointed supreme leader, vowed to attack U.S. bases in the Middle East and keep closed the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passage through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transits.”
Two straits obstructed
Likely as much as 10% of the world’s seagoing livestock shipments also pass through the Strait of Hormuz, heading to Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Dubai, and especially Dammam, Saudi Arabia, the closest port to Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian capital and largest city, home of about seven million of the 38 million Saudi residents.
“The leverage of blocking the Strait of Hormuz must definitely continue to be used,” Mojtaba Khamenei affirmed.
But the 21-mile-wide Strait of Hormuz is not the only strait used by cattle and sheep shipments, obstructed now by the fighting.
The Bab al-Mandab Strait, between Yemen and Djbouti, vulnerable to missiles and drones from the Houthi militia controlling much of Yemen, is no wider, and is the main route for cattle and sheep shipments entering Saudi Arabia from the Red Sea, as well as for cattle shipments from Australia and South America headed to Egypt and Mediterranean ports.
“Khamenei praised Iran’s regional allies—Hezbollah in Lebanon, Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Iraqi militias—for continuing their fight for their common cause. So far, those groups have played a limited role in the current war,” the Wall Street Journal writers assessed, except that cattle and sheep shippers appear to be little more willing than oil shippers to play “chicken” with their vessels and relatively fragile live cargoes.
“Woke to the sound of heavy bombing”
Animals Lebanon war reports and rescues started on March 2, 2026.
“At 2:45 a.m. we woke to the sound of heavy bombing,” Animals Lebanon posted to Facebook.
“The war is back. The animals — the most vulnerable — are once again in grave danger. Strikes have hit Beirut, Bekaa, the South, and other areas. Over 50 villages received evacuation warnings.
“Dozens killed. Hundreds injured. Tens of thousands displaced. The numbers are still rising. Families are fleeing in chaos. Many were forced to leave without their pets.
“Right now there are pets trapped in empty homes, injured animals on the streets, homeless cats and dogs, wildlife affected, and farm animals without care.
“We are already responding,” Animals Lebanon pledged, having considerable past experience in similar situations.
(See The Beirut explosion one year later, by Jason Mier, Animals Lebanon and A world away, Animals Lebanon copes with an even bigger disaster.)
“Fully mobilized”
“Between yesterday and today,” Animals Lebanon continued a day later, “our rescue teams entered heavily bombed areas to retrieve animals left behind during evacuations.
“Our team is fully mobilized.
“We are receiving rescue requests every hour, assessing each case based on urgency and security risks, and entering affected areas whenever possible to save the animals left behind.”
Besides doing direct animal rescue when possible, Animals Lebanon provided “food and supplies for displaced pets, boarding cages [travel kennels] so cats can stay safely with their guardians in shelters, and distributed “travel crates for families fleeing with their animals,” assisting 89 displaced families during the first few days of renewed fighting.
The war came closer
“One team in South Lebanon rescued two dogs from Tyre and two cats from Ansar. Another team entered the Beirut southern suburbs to respond to multiple rescue calls,” Animals Lebanon recounted.
By March 7, 2026, Animals Lebanon was encountering cases such as one in Cihiyah, where “Before our team arrived, the guardian managed to safely retrieve her cat herself,” and one in Maamoura, where “The guardian returned to the house to look for the cats, but sadly they were no longer there.”
Successful rescues, though, remained more numerous.
But the war came closer.
“While bombs continue to fall, our team is still entering high-risk areas to rescue animals left behind,” Animals Lebanon posted. “Every mission is dangerous. Every life saved matters.
(2020 photo)
Rescuers injured
“Between rescues, our team left food for stray animals in affected areas and assisted families who came to our office. We provided pet food, supplies, cages, and carriers so displaced families can keep their animals safe.”
During one rescue, Animals Lebanon said, “we briefly lost contact with the team while they were inside the building. For a moment, we didn’t know if they had made it out safely. But they refused to leave before getting the cats out.”
Volunteers Kamal and Khalil “were both injured during this rescue. Khalil even had to go to the hospital for treatment,” Animals Lebanon continued.
(Beth Clifton collage from Animals Lebanon photo)
“More animals than we can save”
On the tenth day of fighting, Animals Lebanon counted “144 animals rescued from heavily bombed areas, 265 families assisted with their displaced animals,” and “many animals severely injured by airstrikes.
“Sadly, there are far more animals than we can save,” Animals Lebanon acknowledged. “The team is forced to prioritize. These decisions break our hearts, but they must make the hardest choices in order to save as many lives as possible.
“Every time they enter the war zone, we hold our breath until they come out safely again.”
Recent rescues had included spending 45 minutes cutting through a metal security door locked from the inside in Sfeir, by permission of the home owner, to free two cats, and capturing a cat in Haret Hriek whose owner was “severely injured and now in a coma.”
A second cat believed to be at the scene “has not yet been found,” Animals Lebanon said.
“No vessels are headed to the Persian Gulf”
Monitoring the livestock shipping traffic from Franklin, Tasmania, Australia, animal advocate Katrina Love on March 7, 2026 observed that, “Out of the 119 active livestock vessels currently traversing the world, only one is in the Persian Gulf and she is empty and docked in Dubai.
“No vessels are headed to the Persian Gulf and no vessels are trapped in the Persian Gulf, with the possible exception of the empty one berthed in Dubai.
“No vessels are laden with animals heading to the Gulf and no vessels with animals aboard are trapped in the Persian Gulf or waiting to get into the Persian Gulf.
“Several vessels are headed to Jeddah in the Red Sea,” Love affirmed. “This is a much less risky area than the Persian Gulf right now and normal shipping traffic continues in the Red Sea, perhaps heavier than normal as those vessels that can, divert via that passage. All vessels recently headed to Jeddah appear to have had no trouble getting into port and unloading.”
Long road trips?
But Love expressed concern for animals in transit to other Middle Eastern destinations.
“Currently,” Love theorized, “the worst outcome is probably that some animals may be unloaded in ports other than the usual Persian Gulf ports and be subjected to long road trips across country, but I am unaware as yet, of that occurring.
“The Mediterranean Sea would not be considered part of the crisis area,” Love said. “Neither would the Sea of Marmara or the Black Sea.
“The Red Sea, whilst closer to the action, is also not an active war zone,” Love mentioned, “but there are always the Houthis, though no ships have been attacked of late.”
“No livestock at sea”
Updated Victoria Nugent of Farm Weekly on March 12, 2026, “The Kuwaiti livestock carrier Al Kuwait had been due to depart from Fremantle in the final week of February, carrying thousands of Australian sheep, but reportedly experienced unexpected delays with final clearances that prevented loading.
“The sheep that were due to be exported have not yet been loaded and remain in quarantine.
“Unlike an incident in January 2024 when livestock vessel MV Bahijah was ordered to turn back to Australia, there were no livestock at sea when the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes at Iran on February 28, 2026, sparking the current military conflict.”
(Daniel Leventhal photo)
Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council chief executive Mark Harvey-Sutton told Nugent that the animals stranded at “are being well looked after.”
Continued Nugent, “It’s understood there are no current approvals for the export of livestock to the Middle East.”
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Still early days so hard to judge the exact needs and scope. A lot of work helping people travel with their pets, rescuing pets from bombed areas, providing free or reduced cost vet care for animals injured through the war, feeding homeless animals in areas that are deserted…
This has text summary and best way to donate.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-animals-lebanon-in-crisis
Here is a link of pictures and videos –
https://we.tl/t-j3SOdDbrA7
This time we are trying to set up a new location for Animals Lebanon animals in case that becomes necessary. For now our staff/animals/office are safe enough, but things can change quickly, and there are random attacks and we never know where those will hit. Being outside of Beirut will be safer if situation gets worse.
Trying to keep people updated through social media.
Also have two lions and six baboons in our care we need to get to sanctuaries.
About one million people displaced, 800 dead, and 14% of the country under evacuation warnings/notices
Thanks,
jason
WAR is indeed HELL for all living creatures involved, including those of our species whose current toxic male leaders are now deeply committed to fighting until they achieve their stated missions.
Those animal advocates, such as this writer, who are committed vegans since they don’t wish to participate in any way to the obvious and profound suffering of farmed sentient animals, and are more than satisfied with their long time plant based diet, are beyond sickened knowing what these creatures must endure as they are forcibly transported across oceans to their place of slaughter.
These brutal and abhorrent voyages and the despicable cruelty to which these animals are subject fills me with horror, though I thank you for your reportage and am profoundly grateful to those brave persons who courageously stay behind to rescue as many cats and other domestic animals as they can while they can.
They are the best of our woeful species, of whom I despair.