The paper was founded in 1990 after Omar Belhouchet and nineteen colleagues left the FLN government-owned newspaper El Moudjahid (English: "The Martyr").

Fayçal Métaoui, an El Watan journalist, said that the paper created the website because its most significant competition originated from Arabic-language and English-language news sites.

[8] In September 2020, El Watan released a critical report detailing alleged large-scale corruption by Ahmed Gaid Salah, son of a late Army Chief of Staff.

[9] The report prompted the government to suspend El Watan’s advertising revenue and the newspaper eventually responded by emphasizing its support for the army.

Newspaper management claimed unpaid salaries were due to revenue lost from bullying from the state, as well as improper notification of debt repayment by tax authorities and Crédit Populaire d’Algérie's decision to "freeze the company's accounts despite continuous attempts to find a solution to the problem".