How Instagram Cat Influencers Are Helping Break News in Gaza

Sister Minnie is a cat with wide amber eyes, doughy face, and fur the color of a storm cloud. Her good looks have earned her more than 700,000 followers on Instagram—but lately her account is doing something more serious than your typical funny internet cat: distributing on-the-ground reporting from Gaza.

Of course, it's Sister Minnie’s human family who are doing most of that work. Her owner, Palestinian-American businesswoman Zainah Meqdadi, is coordinating much of the coverage along with the account’s loyal fanbase. Since the events of Oct. 7, videos of Minnie prancing, purring, and adorably misbehaving have been replaced by videos of cats on the streets of Gaza picking their way through rubble and providing comfort to distraught owners.

Minnie and Zainah aren’t the only Instagram influencers that have pivoted to posting about the war in Gaza. Fashion influencers like Huda Beauty and Tamanna Roashan, cooking and home decorating creators like @athomewith__tanzin, and skincare influencers like Asalet Yener are also sharing Gaza content with their audiences.

Read more at The Daily Beast.