Women from Egypt's northern Sinai Bedouin still retain one of their original customs: dress in bright colors in the traditional way, despite the suffering that the people of the region say they witness in the face of confrontations between the security forces and militant Islamic groups.
Yousra Hussein, a young woman from Cairo, was transferred by her father to the province where she spent most of her life. After returning to the capital to join the university, she launched a project to manufacture Bedouin clothes, using women from North Sinai.
Yesra grew up in the city of El Arish, but the coastal city in its memory is very different from that of the Sinai people now.
But military operations have greatly affected the lives of women working with Yousra; many have been displaced to evacuate the border area, and some have lost their husbands because of the violence. However, work continued, with the help of Chinese women working in government jobs in the province to secure their livelihood.
Yousra says she finds it very difficult to communicate directly with the Bedouin who are embroidering. Since armed attacks in the province intensified following the overthrow of former President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013, movement in the Sinai Peninsula has become more difficult.
Yousra Hussein, a young woman from Cairo, was transferred by her father to the province where she spent most of her life. After returning to the capital to join the university, she launched a project to manufacture Bedouin clothes, using women from North Sinai.
Yesra grew up in the city of El Arish, but the coastal city in its memory is very different from that of the Sinai people now.
But military operations have greatly affected the lives of women working with Yousra; many have been displaced to evacuate the border area, and some have lost their husbands because of the violence. However, work continued, with the help of Chinese women working in government jobs in the province to secure their livelihood.
Yousra says she finds it very difficult to communicate directly with the Bedouin who are embroidering. Since armed attacks in the province intensified following the overthrow of former President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013, movement in the Sinai Peninsula has become more difficult.
The beginning of the idea
Yousra lived in El Arish for 18 years, until she had to move to Cairo to attend university.
On the summer vacation, Yasra's family and friends moved to spend the summer there. For Lasra, visiting Cairo was a "punishment" for enjoying the life of the coastal city and preferring the bustling capital.
She remembers this charming city with its beautiful beaches, which were always crowded with Egyptian and foreign tourists who went to the Sinai to enjoy the sea, to treat, to buy Bedouin products from olive oil, spices and of course embroidered garments.
She was about 10 years old when her mother took her to the market for Bedouin clothes for the first time. Yusra remembers the first Bedouin scarf given to her, and she keeps it until today.
Yousra lived in El Arish for 18 years, until she had to move to Cairo to attend university.
On the summer vacation, Yasra's family and friends moved to spend the summer there. For Lasra, visiting Cairo was a "punishment" for enjoying the life of the coastal city and preferring the bustling capital.
She remembers this charming city with its beautiful beaches, which were always crowded with Egyptian and foreign tourists who went to the Sinai to enjoy the sea, to treat, to buy Bedouin products from olive oil, spices and of course embroidered garments.
She was about 10 years old when her mother took her to the market for Bedouin clothes for the first time. Yusra remembers the first Bedouin scarf given to her, and she keeps it until today.
"I was very small, and when I went, that shawl was covering my whole body," Yusra recalls.
Yasra and her family lived in El Arish until 2013, but their lives have become more turbulent since the outbreak of the January 2011 revolution. The massive demonstrations followed by bloody clashes with security forces led to the withdrawal of police forces from various parts, including North Sinai.
Armed attacks in northern Sinai began targeting the gas pipeline that carries gas to Jordan and Israel, and soon developed to witness attacks on the Israeli border. In 2013, coinciding with the departure of Yusra from Arish, Egyptian security in various places in the country, but they were stationed in northern Sinai.
Fighting between the two sides intensified and the Egyptian authorities quickly declared the "war on terror" after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi took power in 2014.
In October 2014, Ansar al-Maqdis targeted an ambush of Qawadis security in northern Sinai, killing dozens of security men and paving the way for the group to pledge allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State Organization.
The state of emergency and night-time curfew in the province has been declared since then, making it easier to travel to the province. When Yusra decided to go to El Arish to launch her project in April 2017 in agreement with a group of Sinai women, , And at times had to ride with strangers because of the lack of transportation.
"The Legendary Book"
Despite the hardship of the trip, Yousra succeeded in launching a project for embroidered Bedouin clothes and began to cooperate with women in North Sinai twice a month for the continuity of production.
Yousra works directly with four women from North Sinai. They work with Bedouin from small villages in Rafah, Sheikh Zuwaid, and Bir al-Abd. Visra provides women with textiles and is left with the task of embroidery. They are supported by the Bedouin Book of Embroidery, which contains all nomadic forms "And sometimes leave them free to create a design.
Yosra tells about the book "The Legendary", which is supposed to contain all forms of Bedouin embroidery, although she admits that she never saw it, and it is also confirmed that most Bedouin women listen to him.
One piece of embroidery sometimes takes about 60 days, and you may need manual labor of five or six women.
Yusra tries to preserve the Bedouin character of the clothes she designs, she does not like "modern" designs, she said.
However, they place these designs on different types of clothing, such as Bedouin sweaters, scarves and dresses.
"Not only for desert"
She wants to spread Bedouin clothes in the cities, she believes that "these clothes are not for desert only .."
Yusra tells me how the Bedouins spend their day in the nearby villages of El-Arish. The day is divided between sheep and milk making, preparing bread, and preparing their evenings for embroidery.
Yusra tells me how the Bedouins spend their day in the nearby villages of El-Arish. The day is divided between sheep and milk making, preparing bread, and preparing their evenings for embroidery.
The security tensions have had a significant impact on the women working with Yousra, many of whom have been displaced to evacuate the border area of Rafah, El Arish and Sheikh Zweid. Since October 2014, the Egyptian authorities have been constructing a buffer zone along the border with the Gaza Strip. To eliminate the militants in this region and to prevent smuggling.
The attack by armed groups on the al-Rawda mosque in the city of Bir al-Abd in Arish last November, which killed more than 300 people, had a negative impact on the lives of those working with Yousra, where their husbands' wives were lost and their impact on their economic situation , Especially with the absence of the principle of formal registration of marriage among the Bedouins of North Sinai, which in turn made the task of extracting their pension papers more difficult."treasure"
Yousra tells of her strong desire to stand with these women to overcome the difficult conditions imposed on them by their project, and dream that the material income they receive will help them rebuild their homes that were destroyed by the fighting when the project returns material profit and improves the political situation in the governorate. Want to keep that old habit.
Since the beginning of the project, security conditions have prevented Yousra from traveling to El Arish to start her work. She has to turn to her friends from North Sinai who are allowed to move to and from the governorate to transport goods between them and the Sinai women.
It also has difficulty communicating with women. Authorities often cut off communications in areas of northern Sinai, saying that this is to prevent armed groups from communicating and facilitating targeting.
Egyptian security forces began a new operation against terrorism last February, which blocked the movement to and from the governorate. The project was paralyzed, but in July the authorities allowed citizens to travel three days a week without prior coordination.
"Buying handmade Bedouin clothes is like buying a treasure," Yusra said.
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