In the beginning of the last week, the readers of El Khabar, a major Algerian newspaper, were surprised to find the last page empty of the daily cartoon by the cartoonist Abdul Qaddar Abdo, who was signing his cartoons under “Ayoub”, and who kept drawing in El Khabar since its foundation in 1990.
“Anna Aljazaer” website quoted from the cartoonist that the reason of resignation is due to a dispute with the El Khabar newspaper over his right to register in the social security fund, and thus receiving a pension in the future, especially that he reached the age of 58 years.
Ayoub, who is considered as one of the founders of El Khabar newspaper, left Algeria to Kuwait to work in the Kuwaiti press several years ago. During that period, he kept sending his daily cartoon to El Khabar newspaper, however, he was surprised when he returned that his contract with El Khabar newspaper does not guarantee his registration in the pension fund, therefore he decided to resign upon feeling that his right is lost, adding that he did not get any leave seven years ago.
The cartoonist Abdul Qaddar Abdo has adopted the name of "Ayoub" as a nickname during the bloody terrorism period in Algeria upon the assassination of dozens of cartoonists and journalists by armed groups, however, he draws under his real name in the Kuwaiti newspaper "Al Jaredah" in which he is still working.
It is worth mentioning that this is the second incident during this month to see a dispute between an Algerian cartoonist and the newspaper in which he is working, since we've already published the story about calling the Algerian cartoonist Jamal Ghanem to present himself before the court upon a financial dispute with the francophone newspaper "Al Sout Al Wahrani".
El Khabar cartoons archive