Bangladesh Court Sentences Ex-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina To Death In Absentia

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal has sentenced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to death in absentia for crimes against humanity linked to the 2024 crackdown on student protests that the UN says left up to 1 400 people dead. Hasina, now 78 and living in India after being ousted last year, rejected the ruling as politically driven.

Former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan also received a death sentence, while ex-police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun was given five years for co-operating with prosecutors. The interim government led by Muhammad Yunus urged calm after small explosions and clashes in Dhaka, as human rights groups condemned both Hasina’s abuses and the use of capital punishment.