Tawfeek Al-Mansouri, a Yemeni journalist and human rights defender now living in Canada, explains how years of independent reporting in Yemen led him to focus on ordinary people — families who lost everything, people detained without reason, and communities the world forgot — because the most important stories were shaped by war, power, and injustice rather than politics. He describes how journalism became increasingly dangerous amid threats, surveillance, and pressure, and how conditions worsened after the Houthis seized Sanaa in September 2014, when newspapers were closed, websites blocked, and journalists treated as enemies.

In June 2015, he was among nine journalists abducted from a hotel in Sanaa by Houthi authorities. He spent nearly eight years in detention, was tortured, and in April 2020 was sentenced to death alongside three colleagues for his journalism — a case documented by the UN Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen. He was released in April 2023 as part of a prisoner exchange, and reached Canada in 2025.

He says prison strengthened his conviction that press freedom is fundamental to human dignity, and that reaching Canada gave him the safety to speak freely and rebuild after exile. He now works with journalists, human rights organizations, and international institutions to keep attention on Yemen, document violations, support accountability, and advocate for detainees and colleagues still imprisoned — while confronting a “justice gap” where evidence exists but justice remains elusive. He continues writing, creating infographics, and participating in events to keep Yemen’s victims from being forgotten, aiming to protect current journalists and defenders, preserve truth, and prevent impunity.