Sheikh Hasina sentenced to death

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has received a major shock. The International Crimes Tribunal, which investigated the nationwide protests and riots triggered by students opposing the cancellation of government job quotas, has found Hasina guilty and sentenced her to death.

The verdict was delivered after months of trial conducted in Hasina’s absence. She was convicted on three charges: inciting violence, issuing orders to kill protesters, and failing to prevent attacks during the student uprising. The court stated that she had directly ordered the use of lethal weapons, drones, and helicopters to suppress the protesters.

Hasina was removed from the post of Prime Minister on August 5, 2024, and has since been taking refuge in India. Currently, Muhammad Yunus is serving as the head of Bangladesh’s interim government. Since Yunus took charge, attacks on Bangladesh’s minority Hindus and Hindu temples have continued. Offices of Hasina’s Awami League party and statues of Bangladesh’s founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman—Hasina’s father—have also been targeted and vandalized in various places.

With today’s death sentence for Hasina, it remains to be seen how the situation of the Awami League and Hasina’s family will unfold in the coming days.