Tawakkol Karman is a Yemeni journalist, women’s rights and human rights activist, who co-founded the organisation Women Journalists Without Chains in 2005 and has been a prominent voice for freedom of expression, democratic reform and accountability in Yemen. She was first arrested on 22 January 2011 by security forces in Sana’a, accused of “undermining public social peace” because of her role in organising student protests. She was held for approximately thirty-six hours and released on parole on 24 January 2011 with conditions that she not violate public order. During the earlier years of her activism, Karman regularly organised sit-ins and protests (starting around 2007) against corruption, censorship and repression, and she had already received threats, harassment and other reprisals from the authorities. Her prominence increased sharply with the Arab Spring protests. Due to her leadership in early 2011 she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2011 for her struggle for women’s rights, democracy and peace in Yemen. In subsequent years, Karman has continued advocacy from abroad (after the Houthis took control of Sana’a she left Yemen) and has remained subject to targeting, including raids on her home and office by Houthi forces (notably in December 2020), bans on travel (she was denied entry into Egypt in 2013), political pressure, and suspension from her party (Islah) in 2018 following her critical comments toward the Saudi-UAE coalition. Despite these reprisals, she continues to lead civil society projects through her foundation, issue statements condemning human rights violations, and campaign for democratic change in Yemen.