The Palestine International Institute and Al-bayyara Cultural Association declared the launch of the third Palestine awards, containing its six categories, Naji al-Ali cartoon award is one of them.
"Palestine Awards" is a collection of awards in the field of culture, literary and art. The prize amount is five thousand U.S. dollars at each category. The main aim of the awards is to maintain the presences in the memory of humankind, Also to increase awareness about the Palestinian cause, To highlight the great important position of art and literary by having awards which hold the Palestinian creative people, as well as encouraging and stimulate the creative sense which the Palestinians has and to urge creators to create works of art which enhance and force the culture of resilience and return.
The announcement of winners and delivering awards will in a special ceremony called “Palestine Day of Culture” on September this year.
The cartoon Category is called Naji Al-Ali (Palestinian cartoonist), so who is Naji al-Ali?
He is one of the most important cartoonist in Arab World. He is a Palestinian, he was born in Al-Shajarah village before the Israeli invaders of Palestine. His family immigrated to Lebanon in the Calamity year ,which is the year of invading Palestine in 1948, back then he was 10 years old he spent his childhood and youth in the Palestinian camp in south Lebanon.
He published his first cartoon in 1961, he travelled in 1963 to Kuwait and started working there in Al-Taliah newspaper, then he worked in a many Arabian newspapers. In 1969, he created a cartoon character called Hanzalah a 10-year old child. He talked about the Palestinian cause so he revealed many corruption files he painfully talked about the Israeli invaders and the Palestinians’ suffering because of invaders or their suffering in the country of asylum.
He was forced to leave Kuwait at the request of the Kuwaiti government because of pressure exerted on it. He left to London where he started working in the international version of Al-Qabas newspaper.
On July 22, 1987, while he was heading to his work place in one of London’s street an anonymous young man shot him, the shot pierced Naji’s right ear and settled under his right eye, He remained in a coma until he died on August 29 of the same year.