Tawfiq Al-Tamimi was a journalist for the Iraqi newspaper Al-Shabat. Tamimi was abducted as he was on his way home in Baghdad on March 9, 2020 by gunmen from the Death Squads linked to Iranian-backed militias. Masked gunmen intercepted the car in which he was traveling after he left his home in Baghdad and took him by force to an unknown destination.

Two days prior to his abduction, Al-Tamimi posted on Facebook a picture of himself, author Mazen Latif, and a text calling for the release of Latif. He also voiced support for the Tishreen Movement protests on his Facebook page, and he used to criticize the Iraqi authorities and Iran’s malign influence in Iraq.