Youssef al-Manasif
Additional Name(s): يوسف المناسف
Gender: Male
Current Location: Ghezel Hesar Prison
Perpetrator: Saudi Arabia
Ethnic Group: Arab
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Shi'a
Reports of Torture: Yes
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Appeal: Court of Appeal ruled to uphold death sentence
Sentence: Death
Date of Detainment: April/6/2017
Date of Sentencing: October/16/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Children’s Rights Protesting Religious Freedom Conditions Religious Identity
Nature of Charges: Aid & Abetment Drug Trafficking & Illicit Drug Use Harboring a Fugitive Illegal Assembly Illicit Financing Terrorism Treason & Sedition
Youssef al-Manasif
Extra Bio Info:
Youssef al-Manasif is imprisoned and sentenced to death for his religious identity and religious freedom advocacy.
In April 2017, authorities arrested al-Manasif for participating in protests in al-Qatif against the state's treatment of Shi'a citizens. Prosecutors charged him with numerous crimes, including participating in riotous gatherings that affect the unity and stability of the Kingdom, joining a terrorist cell, financing terrorism, selling narcotic pills to security men, and stirring up sedition, among others. Al-Manasif was 20 years old at the time of his arrest and accused of crimes that he allegedly committed when he was a minor, two of which dated back to when he was 15 and 16 years old.
In October 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court sentenced al-Manasif to death. The sentence was overturned in November 2024 after a long series of appeals, but was reimposed by the Saudi Supreme Court in February 2025. In August 2025, the Court of Appeal upheld his death sentence.
Saudi authorities tortured Al-Manasif, subjected him to solitary confinement, forced him to sign a confession, denied him proper access to legal counsel, and refused visitation from his family for the first five months of his detention.
Publicly Available Information:
- "Saudi Arabia Manipulates: Death Sentences Reimposed on Juveniles and Protesters After Sham Retrials" European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights
- "Saudi Arabia Manipulates: Death Sentences Reimposed on Juveniles and Protesters After Sham Retrials" The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights
- Photo used with permission from MENA Rights Group
- "Young Saudi dissident faces execution for protesting as a minor" MENA Rights Group
- "Saudi Arabia Threatens the Lives of at Least 9 Minors" European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR)
- European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights, Tweet, October 18, 2022
- “Saudi Arabia calls for the imposition of Hirabah punishment against the minor Youssef Al-Manasif” European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR)