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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for atrocities over her crackdown on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the unrest in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent 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 responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had demanded tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her government's record on individual freedoms.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a notable rise in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 began with requests to remove state employment quotas but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader confirmed by investigative sources during the current year implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those killed during the protests informed media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

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

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has shown no willingness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; which is why I am disappointed," he continued.

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.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this country."

The activist added that the sentence was not closure for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.