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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity over her harsh response on protests led by students which resulted in her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had called for strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"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 before the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a notable rise in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official the police spokesperson stated to press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year began with calls to eliminate state employment quotas but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by investigative sources in previous months suggested she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the ballot.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but so far India has expressed no readiness to agree.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am sad," he added.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her former home minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "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 bulk of the population in this country."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not closure for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They cannot pardon her."

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

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.