DHAKA, BANGLADESH — The International Crimes Tribunal-Bangladesh (ICT-BD) today delivered a death sentence to ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, concluding a landmark trial that found her guilty of crimes against humanity related to the deadly crackdown on the student-led uprising in 2024.
The verdict was announced amid heightened national security, with the court finding the former prime minister guilty of directly ordering the use of lethal force to suppress the widespread protests in July and August of last year. Hasina, who had fled to India in August 2024, was tried and convicted in absentia.
The ruling comes only months before parliamentary elections, scheduled for early February 2026, which her now-banned Awami League party is currently barred from contesting. Political analysts fear the judgment could significantly escalate tensions and trigger fresh unrest across the nation.
Core Findings and Political Fallout
- The Charges: Prosecutors successfully argued that evidence uncovered during the months-long trial proved Hasina’s direct command for the violent suppression of the protests, making her the “mastermind and principal architect” of the atrocities.
- Scale of Violence: A United Nations report stated that up to 1,400 people may have been killed during the two-month period of the protests, with thousands more injured—the worst political violence in Bangladesh since its 1971 War of Independence.
- Appeal Stance: While the verdict is subject to appeal in the Supreme Court, Hasina’s son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, stated they would not pursue an appeal unless a democratically elected government, with the Awami League’s full participation, is installed.
- Defense Rejection: Hasina, who was represented by a state-appointed defense counsel, had pre-emptively dismissed the proceedings as a “politically motivated charade” and a “foregone conclusion.”
- National Tensions: The country has been on edge, with security forces deployed heavily following reports of at least 30 crude bomb explosions and 26 vehicles torched across the country in the days leading up to the verdict.
