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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations stemming from her harsh response on protests led by students which led to her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the unrest in the previous year.

Hasina was tried without her presence 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 hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt last year started with requests to remove government job quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by media examinations in previous months indicated she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for both nations. Authorities have sought her repatriation but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disappointed," he added.

Recently, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

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

"We work with numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from the former leader and the old leadership," he stated.