MSF Lebanon: Meet the pets providing companionship to the displaced in a time of conflict

06 August 2026 - Following the escalation in Lebanon, over a million people were forcibly displaced or had to leave their homes at a moments' notice. Today, with continued Israeli attacks and occupation of areas in southern Lebanon, more than 360,000 people remain internally displaced.

In moments of displacement, people are forced to make impossible choices about what they can carry with them and what they must leave behind. For Malak, Hasna, Nisreen, and Hussein - four people that Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) mobile teams encountered in collective shelters - their animals were never possessions to abandon. They were companions, family members, and a connection to the lives they were forced to leave behind.
​​
​All four repeated one statement: “Hayde rouh metla metlna” — “This is a soul, just like ours.”
​Their stories reflect a wider reality of displacement: when people lose their homes and routines, the bonds they protect become part of how they hold on to comfort, stability, and a sense of belonging.

For International Cats Day (8th Aug), we are releasing this photo series to highlight the enduring bonds people hold onto when everything else is uncertain.

Fouad and Loulou

10 year old Fouad holds his companion in a collective shelter MSF'c mobile clinic visit in Beirut. His mother, Nisreen, tells us their displacement story: "We were displaced from the southern suburb of Beirut. When we left our home, we took our cat, Loulou, with us. She was only three and a half months old. We couldn't leave her behind under the shelling. She's a living soul, we couldn't just abandon her. Loulou left the house with us, just like the rest of the family, and stays next to Fouad all the time."

Hasna, Koko & Kouki

“A soul is precious. Our souls are not more precious than the souls of those we lost.” — Hasna, speaking about her birds. After fleeing Laylaki with her family, Hasna returned to bring back Koko and Kouki. Despite her own health challenges and displacement, she wanted to keep them safe.

“I left my home at 3:30 in the morning. We left with the clothes on our backs. There was heavy traffic, people were filling the streets, and everyone was trying to escape and find safety. Thank God we managed to leave. I live in Laylaki with my husband and my three children. There was danger, but we are used to it. We are not afraid of Israel, but we have souls that we need to protect. Otherwise, I would not have left my home.

My birds are Koko and Kouki. I have had them for almost a year. I went back to Dahye only to bring them back. They are souls, just like me and my children. A soul is precious, but our souls are not more precious than those of the martyrs who were lost. I just hoped my birds could come back home with me one day.

I am originally from Mashghara in the Bekaa, but I have lived in Laylaki. Alhamdulillah, what matters now is that we return home. Just one week before the war, I had surgery because I have thyroid cancer. I was shocked when I found out I had cancer, but leaving my home suddenly was even harder.

In the first night we left, I didn't know where we were going. So, I temporarily left them behind with a lot of food. I spent four days in the streets after being displaced, and then I came to this school. Every time there was a strike, I would think about them and wonder if they were scared. When I finally returned and they heard my voice, they started jumping. I felt so bad for them."

Note to Editors:

In Lebanon MSF continues adapting its response to ensure people can access essential healthcare wherever they are. Mobile clinics across southern Lebanon, Beirut's southern suburbs, Baalbek-Hermel and northern Lebanon provide primary healthcare, mental health services, sexual and reproductive healthcare, treatment for chronic diseases and referrals, while fixed clinics in Bourj Hammoud and Hermel continue delivering routine care. ​

MSF has been supporting obstetric emergency and neonatal care in Zahle and the central Bekaa, as well as improving access to secondary healthcare through support to hospitals across the country. Additionally, our teams have begun rehabilitating primary healthcare centres, distributing relief items, upgrading ambulances, supporting hospitals with medical donations and emergency preparedness, and providing mental health support for healthcare workers.

--ENDS--