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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on youth demonstrations which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the disturbances during 2024.

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.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had requested strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, the former leader stated the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on human rights.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque told media outlets.

The student-led uprising in the previous year started with requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by external reviews earlier this year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Before the decision, kin of those who died in the demonstrations told media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the vote.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; that's why I am sad," he continued.

Recently, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

While the sentence grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this country."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not finality for the kin of those killed and injured.

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a regular participant of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the previous administration," he expressed.