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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for atrocities over her severe measures on protests led by students which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances during 2024.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had demanded tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative Jisanul Haque informed press agencies.

The student-led uprising in the previous year started with calls to eliminate state employment quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

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

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by external reviews during the current year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those killed during the protests stated to press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

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

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted last month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her repatriation but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

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

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he continued.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told media outlets. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not resolution for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, 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 standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.