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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity due to her severe measures on youth demonstrations which led to her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom were killed during the unrest in the previous year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and wounded had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the police spokesperson stated to media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through requests to remove public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

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

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader verified by media examinations in previous months suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those killed during the protests informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

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

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

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

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

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

She alerted last month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but until now India has expressed no readiness to agree.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

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

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this country."

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

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.