Ahmad Dwikat, a Palestinian worker, inspects the soap bars stacked to dry before wrapping them in a soap factory in the city of Cisjordanie in Nablus on March 1.
Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
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Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
Nablis, West Bank – While the sun begins to get up over the old town of Nablus, workers light a giant offense of a furnace at the Touqan soap plant right next to the main square. The dynamic flames begin to slowly heat a giant tank containing hundreds of gallons of goopy and waxy sludge above. It is a morning ritual that has been performing at the factory for over 150 years.
Musa Assakhal scratches a metal spatula through the mixture – a combination of virgin olive oil, water and detergent – checking the consistency. He returns a switch and a large metal blade starts slowly to turn, gently slide the thick liquid on the surrounding surfaces when it mixes. He has been boiling and turning off for several days.
“I’m waiting for him to boil,” he said. “Once it boils, I will know if it is ready or not.”
Assakhal did this work for most of his life. His father had work in front of him. He sometimes came to help when he was a child.
“This work gives me great joy, to be able to do something as my ancestors have done,” he said, smiling.
The Palestinian city of Nablus is known for its soap with olive oil for centuries, the tradition of transmitting it from generation to generation. In December, tradition was added to the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage list after Palestinian representatives appointed it.
A worker spins soap bars at the Touqan soap plant in Nablus, in the West Bank, on March 1.
Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
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Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
While many families are made at home, Touqan, opens in 1872, is one of the oldest factories still in operation. But factory workers say that affairs have slowed down because competition from the world’s brands has increased, but also as the Israeli military occupation of the West Bank has put more and more on the possession and exploitation of a business. In recent years, they have had to reduce staff and production has decreased by about a third.
In January, Israel launched a new destructive military operation in the northern part of the West Bank, which, according to her, is for the fight against terrorism. The operation has moved tens of thousands of Palestinians from their houses, the forces destroying hundreds of residential buildings, according to the Israeli army, saying that destruction was an “operational necessity”. He also rendered the districts where he focused on the United Nations, according to the United Nations, reinforcing the necessary streets and infrastructure.
Military activity has slowly spread to the south. On March 21, the Israeli army announced that it had started operating in Naplus, making daily raids in the city.
“We are now living through the worst military obstacles on the roads leading to the place where our soap must reach our customers,” said Nael Qubbaj, director of manufacturing at the factory for 30 years.
He says that the roadblocks, the control points and the raids which are part of the Israeli military occupation in recent decades have made it increasingly difficult to function the factory. Now, the interrupted military activity has aggravated things. Sometimes workers cannot go to work or soap shipments cannot be delivered.
A worker wraps a soap bar by hand in the company’s white paper packaging.
Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
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Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
The day before the NPR visit, the Israeli army made a descent into the old town of Nablus, for what he said was the ends of fighting terrorism, drawing on several people. The factory continued to operate, but it is a disruptive and dangerous, explains Qubbaj.
So, he adds, being recognized by the United Nations Cultural Agency at a difficult time makes it all the more special. While the UNESCO World Heritage List of World Heritage includes important sites around the world, its category of intangible cultural heritage of humanity designates products and customs of different cultures – like Japan, for example.
“Given this seat, all these political disorders, all this oppression against the Palestinian people, a recognition of UNESCO of our soap brings not only pride, but it is a celebration of many years of work on this soap,” he said. “We want to keep this heritage alive.”
The top floor of the factory is a large open room, with a smooth cement floor. When the consistency of the soap mixture at the bottom is ready – generally after a week of boiling on and off – the carriers transport it on the stairs in metal buckets, one after the other, spreading it on the ground to harden.
Then it is cut into bars using long pieces of wire and stacked in high cylindrical towers to dry for about three months.
The last step in the process can be heard from the next part, a very rhythmic floating. Men seated on the ground, surrounded by soap bars, wrap each bar in the hand in the packaging of white paper signature of the company stamped with blue Arab lettering and two red keys, at the top of small wooden tables perched in front of them. It’s fascinating to watch.
Sultan Qaddura soil director stands nearby, laughing with one of the packaging while they work. He says that many of them can wrap around a thousand bars on time.
“We call this Nablus white gold soap,” he said with a smile. Quddura has also been working at the factory for decades, as are most wrapped men.
He says that the recognition of UNESCO has made them all very, very proud. “We work so hard to preserve this story. It is not only soap, it is part of our identity,” he said.
Opened in 1872, Touqan is one of the oldest traditional Palestinian soap factories still in service.
Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
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Abed Omar Quinis for NPR
Downstairs, the soap has just started to boil, with large heavy bubbles slowly raised to the surface.
Musa Assakhal checks with expert consistency.
“It’s almost there,” he said.
Tomorrow he says that the wearers will come to wear it upstairs. And then a new batch will be mixed, so the process can start again, just as it has been doing for over 150 years.
Nuha Musleh contributed to this report from Naplus, in the West Bank.
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