Mother bakes bread on roadside to feed orphans in NE Syria’s Qamishli
Malka al-Sayyed, a woman in her fifties and a mother of eight orphaned children, bakes bread on the roadside in the city of Qamishli, northeastern Syria – North Press
By Nalin Ali
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – On the outskirts of a main street in Qamishli city, northeastern Syria, near the Syrian-Turkish border, stands Malka al-Sayyed—a woman in her fifties and a mother of eight orphaned children. Under the scorching sun and in front of her mud oven, she bakes flatbread that carries within it a story of perseverance and hope amid harsh economic conditions.
The idea of baking tandoor bread is not new to the region—there are bakeries in the city that specialize in it—but al-Sayyed’s decision to bake and sell bread on the edge of the city, beside the main road, has caught the attention of passersby and carved out a small space for her in the memory of city residents who prefer this type of bread.
Self-made project
“I used to work in a factory,” says Malka al-Sayyed, 48, a resident of the Muhamqiyah neighborhood in Qamishli originally from nearby villages, “but the salary wasn’t enough for our needs.”
She adds she was born and raised in the countryside. She was skilled in making tandoor bread, so she decided to start a small project on her own.
Al-Sayyed explains that she began working on her idea two months ago, despite her limited resources. She built a mud oven with her own hands and set it up near a main street to ensure a steady stream of customers.
She used to bake bread at home and sell it to neighbors in her area. But sales were limited and confined to the neighborhood. “Here on the main road, sales are better and more profitable for me,” she says.
“The location is very important—people pass by here every day, and that’s better than selling in the neighborhood or going to the market.”
The journey hasn’t been easy. The rising price of flour—which she buys for 180,000 Syrian pounds—often prevents her from baking. “Some days I can’t afford the flour, so I have to stop working,” she says.
Challenges and harassment
Al-Sayyed begins her workday at six in the morning and continues until noon. Then she returns at four in the afternoon to resume kneading and baking.
“I endure suffering and torment under this heat. I don’t have means to buy an umbrella or build a shelter. Step by step, this is how life works,” she says.
Her children help her collect firewood, as she cannot afford to buy it. Although setting up her oven on the main street has increased her sales, she faces harassment from the municipality, which has repeatedly asked her to remove the oven.
Despite the project being relatively new, the bread she makes has already started attracting customers. Many prefer it because, as she says, “It’s handmade by a woman,” which gives it a local, authentic feel.