Sharjah24 – Reuters: Twenty Syrian women take turns to stir soap paste for three hours non-stop on a daily basis to carve out a living for themselves in the rebel-held city of Idlib.

The women, who are all widowed, divorced or supporting ill husbands, produce the country's famed laurel soap after learning the craft at a centre in Maarat Masrin in northern Idlib.

“I didn't know how to cook the soap paste. I just used to buy soap from shops, we didn't know how to manufacture it. Now all of the twenty women can even train others to make soap, it became our job,” 37-year-old Um Mohammed, who works in the project to support her ill husband and three children, said.

In addition to making soap, the women run all aspects of the project, including manufacturing handmade bags for packaging and marketing their product both online and offline.

Despite the challenges they face, the women hope to expand their business and export their products in the future.