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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her crackdown on student-led protests which resulted in her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil during 2024.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection before the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a notable rise in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the police spokesperson told press agencies.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by investigative sources during the current year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest told 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 "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

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

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

After her departure, an caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

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

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

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

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not resolution for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a regular participant of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.