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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for atrocities due to her severe measures on youth demonstrations which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom died during the unrest in the previous year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on human rights.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a recent spike in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative Jisanul Haque told press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader confirmed by external reviews earlier this year suggested she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

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

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her repatriation but to date India has shown no willingness to agree.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I am unable to challenge because my represented individuals are away; that's why I am disheartened," he stated further.

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

The former leader faced trial together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," 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 "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the sentence was not finality for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he said.