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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which led to her removal from power.

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

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year began with requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "violations of human dignity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of further participants, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources during the current year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

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

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

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

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but to date India has shown no willingness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am disappointed," he added.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her former home minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

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

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with the former leader and the old leadership," he expressed.