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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which resulted in her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people died during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and injured had demanded strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the police spokesperson told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with demands to abolish state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources in previous months indicated she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those who died in the demonstrations stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Solely at that point the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

Following her removal, an interim government led by economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am sad," he added.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her former home minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this nation."

The activist added that the penalty was not resolution for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.