Born in 1953 in Casablanca, he is a film critic, writer, journalist and a former university professor in the faculty of Arts and Human Science in Rabat. He is a member of the Moroccan Writers' Union and member of the Central Library from 1979 till 1983. Al-Mesnaoui was one of the founders of the International Festival of University Theatre in Casablanca in 1988.

Al-Mesnaoui was granted the honorary fellowship from Iowa State University in the United States in 1996, former councilor in the Ministry of Culture. Now he is a professor in Faculty of Arts and Human Science in Casablanca and he was chosen to be among juries of different film festivals around the world. He writes short stories as well as translating novels from French and Spanish.
He died 17th November 2015 in Cairo.