When a Bahraini reads his newspaper in the morning, he is not only looking for new news, but rather for a voice that resembles him, and for an ink who tells his story, and this is how “Al-Watan” has been since its inception – the voice of the people, the mirror of the nation, and a field that is not satisfied with conveying the event, but rather creates meaning and memory from it. Today, with the announcement of the new leadership appointments led by the Chairman of the newspaper’s Board of Directors, Hisham Abdul Rahman Al Rais, “Al-Watan” is entering a new phase of development and renewal, led by Faisal Al-Ali, who assumed the presidency. Editing, so that the newspaper continues its journey in the ever-renewing spirit of Bahrain, and in its belief that the media is a message and a responsibility no less than any other national project.
The news is not in the change itself, but in the approach that this change brings. When the board of directors chooses young Bahraini faces to lead the editorial and digital work, it simply says to the people: This is your newspaper, and these are competencies from you and to you, from Salman Al-Wardi to Issa Al-Ustad, Zahraa Habib, Nasser Muhammad and Abdullah Mal Allah – every name bears a Bahraini success story, and every site reflects Al-Watan’s belief that development can only occur by providing opportunities and empowering young energies.
It is not surprising that “Al-Watan” won the award for the best news website for a journalistic institution in the Prime Minister’s Award for Journalism 2025, which is the award that went to our colleague Faisal Al-Ali in appreciation of his efforts in developing digital content, and his proof that the national media is able to compete and excel when there is determination and sincerity behind it.
But “Al-Watan” did not get here by chance, but rather through a long process of giving and determination, led by men and women who believed that the sincere word was able to build a homeland as factories and schools build it. Therefore, thanks are due to everyone who contributed to making its glory, from the editor-in-chiefs whose pens planned a developmental and structural renaissance, the last of whom was Abdullah Al-Hami, who led it with a team spirit. During his reign, it was closer to the pulse of the people, and a truer expression of their conscience.
This coronation does not belong to a specific newspaper, but rather to every Bahraini who sees the media as a partner in development, and a voice that expresses it and does not talk about it. The homeland that bears the name Bahrain will remain a platform for honesty, a mirror for the people, and a new line in the story of a country whose history is written with an unquenchable belief that Bahrain is first and forever.
