In a scene that is firmly entrenched in the memory of Palestinians from "Altagriba" series, which represents a real scene of the migration in 1948 when Um Ahmed packed some of her important belongings in a Bukja, as did thousands of others, the term Bukja was a symbol of that tragedy.

It remained that way until it reappeared today in a new form that accompanies tables, picnics, and wedding seasons, designed to keep food hot. So, what is its story?"

The Bukja is a large square cloth in which necessary belongings are packed. It emerged clearly during the migration of Palestinians in the 'Nakba' in 1948 and turned into a pure Palestinian heritage and folklore that cannot be ignored.

Despite the great difference between its use yesterday and today, the Bukja still remains a handcrafted symbol of the ingenuity of Palestinian women in the manufacture of tools that help them earn money from spinning and thread.

Today, the Bukja has returned in the form of a thick thermal cloth bag striped in red, green, and white, similar to the colors of the tent as an expression of Bedouin heritage.

Part of those who make this Bukja in the Gaza Strip are women living in the Bedouin village of Um al-Nasr, which is one of the 28 slums distributed in the Gaza Strip, where thousands of people suffering from poverty live and take every possible opportunity to work and survive the harsh conditions of life.

"Last Story" interviewed Um Muhammad (50 years old) , who spends ten hours a day manufacturing Bukja. She begins by arranging successive layers of fabric that are more than five layers, the most important of which is the heat-preserving 'brocade'.

Then she and her colleagues begin sewing by hand, stitch by stitch, with needle and thread until they move to using the sewing machine.

Um Muhammad expressed her happiness with the manufacture of Bukja, whether as a way of improving her economic conditions or preserving Palestinian heritage.

She described it as a 'useful invention' and added that she also uses it in her kitchen, and it has benefited her greatly, especially during the month of 'Ramadan' when she cooks early and goes to work, so the food remains warm until Iftar."

Away from Um Mohammed, the Zeina Cooperative Society, located in the Bedouin village in the northern Gaza Strip, has set up a sewing factory where fifteen women are present every day, producing handicrafts, including the Bukja.

According to Asma Abu Qaida, the association's factory coordinator, the workers are between 25 and 50 years old and produce cloth handicrafts, but the main focus is on the production of the Bukja.

The Bukja production line is one of the association's production lines, which was established to empower women economically and socially in the marginalized village called 'um al-Nasr', and all its workers are women from the region who decided to start their own business.

Abu Qaida told "Last Story" that the association consists of sewing and carpentry factories run by women to produce a variety of products, the most important of which are environmentally and child-friendly toys, which have recently become their most important product after they enrolled in a training course to learn how to produce them in an improved way.

Throughout the ages, the Bukja has been a means of packing belongings, and the sight of migrants in Palestinian alienation has not been in vain, according to Walid al-Akkad, a researcher in Palestinian archaeology and history, who told "Last Story" that people used it instead of a bag and carried it either on their backs or on top of their animals.

Despite the importance of the Bukja, it suffers from difficulty in marketing in the Gaza Strip, as a result of the difficult economic conditions in the area and the continuous rise in the poverty rate, which has reached 53%, according to the Palestinian Center for Statistics.

This has prompted Zeina to look for other marketing prospects, in addition to a few attempts to export to the West Bank through delivery services."