'Birds of peace' give life to Lebanese woman stuck in Khan Younis

2023-11-02 04:42:23

Fakhar Taj Shear's love for birds has kept her sane throughout years of war and conflict in the Gaza Strip.

As thousands are fleeing their homes from Israel’s brutal air strikes, the Lebanese woman, 70, decided to take her birds with her as she fled to Khan Younis in the south.

Ms Shear left her home in Lebanon in 1978 following Israel's invasion, in which her husband, who is Palestinian, was killed.

“I love animals more than myself,” she told The National. "They are my healing mechanism."

Ms Taj and her family, daughter Raneem and grandson Ahmed, have camped in a two-metre tent outside Nasser hospital in the south and have taken the birds with them in a cage.