As Israel continues to indiscriminately bombard Lebanon in what it says is an operation against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah, the number of casualties and displaced citizens also continues to climb. While the world watches in horror, animals – from strays to beloved pets separated from their owners – are just as vulnerable in times of conflict.

Now, Lebanese animal welfare NGO workers are risking their lives by going into active conflict zones and bombed-out buildings around the country, attempting to rescue as many animals as they can.

Animals Lebanon, one of the country’s largest animal aid NGOs, has been receiving hundreds of requests every day to help find pets lost or left behind during the bombings, feed strays in deserted villages, or house the pets of the displaced, many of whom currently live on the streets with nowhere to safely keep their animals.

Through donations, the team has bought hundreds of pet carriers, supplies and food to help those in need. Injured animals, or those recovering from the ordeal of being without food and water for so long, are being cared for at their practice.

“The very first day, we got 200 requests, and we weren’t even telling the public to contact us. We are absolutely overwhelmed by the number of people needing help and trying to hire additional staff so we can try to keep up,” Animals Lebanon director Jason Mier told Al Arabiya English. “Lots of the displaced people actually took their pets with them but are living on the streets or in some random place, so we’re giving them food and equipment so that their pet has a place to stay.Some animals we’ve kept temporarily for people.”

He continued, “In some cases, we’re going into places people have fled. Sometimes, people were just not even at home; the bombing started, and they couldn’t go back, or in the panic, they got left behind or lost. People are coming to our office, giving us their house keys, and then we’re going in and getting their animal,” Mier said. “Most of the bombing has all been in the afternoon and evening, so we’re really trying to go in the morning, pay attention to news and coordinate with police or army if there’s somebody in the area.”

The director said the entire group, other than himself, is made of locals.

“Other than myself, the entire group is local people, so it’s their country, it’s their passions. There’s nothing special that we can do to be safe. If the worst happens, it happens,” he told Al Arabiya English.

They’ve also been rescuing strays and vulnerable wildlife seized from illegal trade, such as a lion cub, waiting to be sent to a sanctuary in South Africa, six baboons supposed to fly to the UK, and four lions, two bears, a tiger and jaguar headed to a sanctuary in the US. With flights being canceled, the team is trying to coordinate military evacuation flights to get the animals out.

Some staff and volunteers have fled their own homes, sleeping at the Animals Lebanon office, Mier’s home, or available hotel rooms. A few team members have experienced similar situations during the 2006 war, or rescuing pets after the 2020 Beirut Port blast, but nothing to the extent of what’s happening now.

Nerve-wracking videos on the group’s social media pages show daring rescues, workers climbing into destroyed, unstable buildings in Beirut’s southern suburb of Dahiyeh – where Israel has concentrated its most violent airstrikes of late – to wrangle terrified, starving cats and dogs. In some cases, tearful owners call out via video calls, to help draw out the hiding animals. In just one mission, over 35 cats were marked for rescue in Beirut’s southern suburb.

Animals Lebanon manager Reem Sadek recalls rescuing a pet dog named Lucy as a highlight amid the trauma and exhaustion, giving them the hope and energy to keep going. Lucy, rescued from Charkiyeh in south Lebanon, had been alone for an entire week without food or water.

“We’ve not really slept since it all started, waking at 5 a.m. so we can coordinate for the rescue trips, we were totally out of energy,” she told Al Arabiya English. “We had twice tried to reach Lucy, but it was too dangerous – we would get there and then Israel would start bombing, so we had to turn back. At some point the owners were giving up hope, but we finally got her. It was so emotional, we all started crying happy tears and it gave us the boost to carry on the whole day.”

As the bombardment in south Lebanon has become worse, Animals Lebanon has had to cut back its activities there, as roads to many areas have been cut off or are too dangerous to enter.

Animal NGOs Give Me A Paw is one of the few still venturing south to rescue animals, despite the daily rocket fire and attempted ground invasion by Israel. For villages no longer accessible to civilians, the NGO’s workers have been coordinating with the Civil Defense to distribute food and water for strays and pets alike. So far, Give Me A Paw says it has rescued 144 animals from the south.

“We’re sending out four cars every day to the south, rescuing pets and picking up any strays we find along the way. Some people thought they would be back home in a day or two, didn’t bring their pets, and then realized how bad the situation is,” founder Tamara Abi Khalil told Al Arabiya English. “In some areas, the Civil Defense didn’t want to get involved, but in others they were actually reaching out to us, asking for food to feed all the animals, which is great.”

Abi Khalil said the NGO is made up of a small team who focuses on the south. However, sometimes they’re takin on cases from other NGOs that can’t reach the area.

“Each of our drivers has someone who knows the south well with them, to help get around without trouble. The trips south are also super expensive, between fuel and paying the drivers, who are asking for a lot of money because they’re understandably risking their lives to go there,” Abi Khalil said.

The NGOs are reliant on generous donations to be able to rescue and care for these animals. With no information on how long the situation will continue, the teams are concerned about losing access to important supplies, such as pet food and medications usually imported commercially, if the situation escalates further. For now, they’re trying to gather as much as possible and prepare for the days ahead.

“We wish we didn’t have to do any of this, but this is the reality of the situation,” Mier said. “It is worthwhile and it’s nice seeing the reactions of those people who we reunite with their pets, but I think the hardest thing is that we have no idea when this is going to end, or how bad it could get.”