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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the unrest last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had called for tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students last year started with calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of others, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by media examinations in previous months implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the vote.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but until now India has shown no willingness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am sad," he stated further.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the sentence was not resolution for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.