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Draft:Trial of Sheikh Hasina

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Trial of Sheikh Hasina
CourtInternational Crimes Tribunal (Bangladesh)
VerdictTrial ongoing
Prosecution
  • Mahmudul Kabir
  • Anika Rahman
DefenseNone (tried in absentia)
Legislation citedInternational Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973
Case history
Subsequent actionSeparate contempt of court conviction (2 July 2025): 6 months in prison.[1]
Related actionOhidul Islam and others v. The Government of Bangladesh and others
Court membership
Judges sitting

The Trial of Sheikh Hasina refers to the ongoing legal proceedings against former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, who was indicted in 2025 on charges of crimes against humanity.

The charges stem from the government’s violent suppression of student-led protests during July and August 2024, which international observers and human rights groups described as "one of the deadliest civilian crackdowns" in Bangladesh’s history since independence.

Pre-trial events

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In mid-2024, mass demonstrations led by university students demanding an end to perceived discriminatory quota in public jobs took place across Bangladesh. The protests intensified across Dhaka and other major cities, and by late July, state security forces, including police, the Rapid Action Battalion, and governing party wings launched a violent crackdown. According to a UN preliminary report, up to 1,400 civilians were killed between July and August, with widespread reports of torture, forced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings.

On 5 August 2024, Sheikh Hasina was ousted from power and fled to India, where she remains in exile. Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was appointed to lead a transitional government. In the following months, the newly empowered International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) began investigating top figures in the former government, leading to the issuance of arrest warrants in early 2025 for Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and former IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun. On 1 June 2025, the prosecution formally filed charges.

Opening of the trial

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The trial officially began on 1 June 2025 with the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) accepting the prosecution’s framing of the case as a matter of “coordinated and systematic violence” against unarmed civilians. The trial marked the first time a former Bangladeshi prime minister was brought before the tribunal on charges of crimes against humanity. Proceedings were televised nationwide, a first in the country’s legal history. The prosecution alleged that the Hasina government deployed conventional police and military units, aswell as using drones, helicopters, and incendiary weapons against demonstrators.

The tribunal ruled that the trial would proceed in absentia for Hasina and Kamal, both of whom had refused to return to Bangladesh despite formal summons and public notices. Al-Mamun, who was taken into custody in May 2025, pleaded guilty and agreed to testify as a state witness.

Charges

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On 10 July 2025, the ICT formally indicted Sheikh Hasina on five counts of crimes against humanity. The charges include orchestrating mass killings of protesters in Dhaka, the use of helicopters and drones to fire on civilian crowds, the murder of student activist Abu Sayed, the incineration of bodies in Ashulia to destroy evidence, and the coordinated killing of demonstrators in Chankharpul. The prosecution presented surveillance footage, drone logs, hospital records, and leaked government communications as part of its preliminary evidence. The tribunal concluded that the evidence supported a finding of a state-orchestrated attack on a civilian population with the intent to intimidate, suppress dissent, and obstruct democratic mobilization.

Contempt conviction

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Separate from the main trial, Hasina was convicted of contempt of court on 2 July 2025 following the release of an audio recording in which she was allegedly heard stating that she had a “license to kill” due to having faced 227 legal cases in the past.

The tribunal found the statement to be a direct affront to the integrity of the court and sentenced her to six months’ imprisonment in absentia. ICT maintained that the contempt conviction was procedurally independent from the war crimes charges.

Proceedings and timeline

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After the 10 July indictment, the tribunal scheduled opening statements for 3 August 2025, with witness testimony to begin the following day. The prosecution indicated that it would call 84 witnesses over the course of the trial, including medical personnel, journalists, survivors, and former security officials. The court appointed public defenders to represent the absent defendants in compliance with tribunal rules.

Reactions

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The Awami League, now banned from electoral politics, condemned the trial alleging a political vendetta and labeled it a “kangaroo court”. International observers, including the United Nations Human Rights Office, expressed cautious support for judicial accountability while urging the ICT to uphold due process and ensure impartiality.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Bangladesh ex-PM Hasina sentenced to six months in contempt case". Al Jazeera. July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025.