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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her severe measures on youth demonstrations which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the turmoil during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was proud of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection prior to the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson told press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year started with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations informed media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the vote.

The judgment creates a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but to date India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; that's why I am disappointed," he added.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

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

"The fury directed at the former leader and the Awami League has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not closure for the kin of those killed and injured.

"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, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.