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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her crackdown on youth demonstrations which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the unrest in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection before the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through calls to eliminate government job quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader authenticated by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those who died in the demonstrations told press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

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

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but to date India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; for that reason I am sad," he stated further.

The previous week, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this state."

The activist added that the penalty was not closure for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with the former leader and the former hierarchy," he stated.