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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity over her severe measures on protests led by students which led to her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the unrest last year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted all charges, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative stated to media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through requests to remove government job quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader verified by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the vote.

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

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; that's why I am disheartened," he continued.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

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

"We support several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.