Tokyo Importer, Having Bought Syrian Soap Throughout Civil War, Hopes Sales Will Now Aid in Reconstruction

The Yomiuri Shimbun

7:00 JST, February 15, 2025

Roughly two months have passed since Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was overthrown in December. Even during the country’s 13-year civil war, a Tokyo-based wholesaler continued to import traditional soap from Syria in an effort to support the industry there.

“I hope the political situation remains stable and peace returns,” said Masaoki Ohta, 54, co-managing director of the Aleppo Soap Trading Co. in Fussa, part of Tokyo.

A hit in Japan

The northern Syrian city of Aleppo has a long tradition of making soap with olive and laurel oils. The ingredients for the soap are boiled in a cauldron and then cooled, cut into bars and left to mature for at least two years. UNESCO has designated the craftsmanship involved in making Aleppo ghar soap as intangible cultural heritage.

Established in 1994, Aleppo Soap Trading imports soap from Aleppo for wholesale. The product has proved a hit thanks to how gentle it is on the skin and its refreshing laurel scent. In 2010, there were about 4,000 Japanese retailers selling Aleppo soap.

The situation changed in March 2011 when the Assad regime suppressed antigovernment demonstrations, sparking a civil war. Aleppo, which was a stronghold of the antigovernment faction, became a battleground.

Aleppo Soap Trading’s business partner in Aleppo, the Talal Adel Fansah Soap Factory, was bombed, and some of the facilities were damaged. Product shipments began to be delayed. Ohta asked his customers to be understanding. “The craftsmen there are working desperately to make the soap, so please be patient and wait for the products to arrive,” he said.

To protect its workers, the company moved its factory to a city in the west of the country in 2014 and continued to make soap there. When Ohta visited the factory in 2019, company President Talal Fansah, 52, thanked Ohta for “coming all the way to this dangerous place.”

Then the war reached a stalemate, and the firm resumed production in Aleppo in 2021.

Fall of regime

On Dec. 8, the antiregime forces were reported to have taken control of Damascus, and Assad fled to Russia. There had been a significant drop in support from Russia for the regime, and after 50 years of rule by the Assad family the regime collapsed.

The power supply and the other infrastructure in Aleppo have not yet been fully restored, and Fansah’s company, which employs about 20 workers, has not yet returned to its pre-war production levels. Nevertheless, Fansah told The Yomiuri Shimbun in an interview, “We escaped a nightmare that had lasted for over 50 years.”

Fansah also said Japanese people had given them hope “for the future advancement of our country.”

As for admirers of Aleppo soap, he added, “I say that your choice of the soap makes me bear a greater responsibility to maintain the quality of the product and continue to improve it to ensure it meets the high standard you expect.”

Hitoshi Imamura, 64, Aleppo Soap Trading’s other managing director, said, “We will continue to deliver to our customers this soap that is a source of pride for the Syrian people, so we may be of some help to their reconstruction efforts.”