In a Syrian market, bags are full of desert truffles, a seasonal food they can collect, braving attacks by the Islamic State group and land mines.
“This is a medicine dipped in blood,” said 31-year-old seller Mohammed Salha, pointing to the truffles he had been collecting for a week near his village in the central province of Hama.
“Every day I leave the house not knowing if I will return to my wife and my son,” he said, a brown keffiyeh scarf wrapped around his head.
“We are risking our lives … but we don’t care anymore, we want to feed our children,” he told AFP, dark circles covering his tired eyes.
Between February and April, hundreds of impoverished Syrians searched for money-spinning food in the vast Syrian Desert, or Badia – a place known to jihadists that is also riddled with landmines.
So far this season, more than 130 truffle hunters have been killed, mostly in ambushes by jihadists or in landmine explosions, according to war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Known for its high quality, desert truffles in Syria fetch high prices in a country forgotten by 12 years of war and a devastating economic crisis.
At a market in the city of Hama, truffles can sell for up to $25 a kilo ($11 a pound) depending on size and grade – in a country where the average monthly wage is around $18.
“We made a big profit during the two months of the truffle season, but we risked our lives,” Salha said with a sick smile.
– ‘Blood on his clothes’ –
Large and small truffles bulged from baskets, trays and hessian bags, some propped up in dirty plastic crates or sitting directly on the footpath.
“Auction! Auction!” shouted one of dozens of vendors as wholesale buyers crowded in to bid for 50 kilos (110 pounds).
Seller Omar al-Boush opened the auction at the equivalent of $4.50 per kilo in Syrian pounds – and the price soon nearly doubled.
“We have the kind of truffles that are suitable for people with middle-class incomes,” said Boush, 52, a red and white keffiyeh around his neck.
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“Some families would rather buy truffles than meat,” he said, placing a large white truffle on the stall with dirt-covered fingers.
Different types of truffles are collected in the desert, which runs through central Syria to the eastern border with Iraq.
Sellers told AFP that black truffles found in the desert regions of Hama and Aleppo provinces fetch the highest prices.
Jamaleddine Dakak, a wholesaler from Damascus, said some traders buy high-quality truffles and export them to neighboring Iraq and Lebanon, while others are reportedly smuggled into wealthy Gulf states via Jordan.
Sitting behind a stall, shopkeeper Yusuf Safaf said he bought truffles from Bedouins who arrived in Hama in the morning – some with “blood on their clothes”.
“Some people lose family members while picking truffles – but they keep doing it … because they don’t have a choice,” the 43-year-old said.
“There are landmines, bandits and a lot of territory” where IS is now, Safaf added.
“People sacrifice their lives … just to feed themselves.”
– Truffle hunting ‘gamble’ –
Foragers take risks despite repeated warnings in the Syrian media.
In one report earlier this month, a military source warned people not to hunt for truffles “because some areas have not been declared safe” from land mines and IS fighters.
Jihad al-Abdullah, 30, lost his leg when a mine exploded while he was driving to collect truffles east of Hama.
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He now walks with crutches, but he says he still occasionally goes out foraging and has been selling truffles his brothers have gathered this season.
“I didn’t lose anything after I lost my leg,” said Abdullah, sprawled on the ground near the stall.
“I continue to work to make a living every day. The rest is up to God.”
Across the country, more than 10 million people live in areas contaminated by explosive hazards, according to the United Nations.
Explosives planted in fields, on roads or even in buildings on all sides in the Syrian conflict killed 15,000 people between 2015 and 2022, according to UN figures.
Abdullah said, collecting truffles is like playing cards.
“Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose,” he said. “It’s a gamble I’ve taken.”