The smell of roasted almonds, pistachios and peanuts fills the air on one of the streets off the main square in Gaza City. Al-Fawakheir Street is known for its old shops, where traditional handcrafts such as pottery are still practiced in shops with clay ovens, gas cookers and old furniture.
The source of the smell is a confectionery factory that makes “rahat lokum” — or “rahat al-hulqum” in Turkish — which is translated as "the ease of the throat.” The sweet is referred to as “lokum” or “halkoum," better known in English as Turkish delight.