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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for human rights violations due to her crackdown on youth demonstrations which caused her forced departure.

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

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

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

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

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a sudden increase in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the police spokesperson informed press agencies.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish state employment quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by investigative sources during the current year suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, kin of those who died in the demonstrations informed media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions 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 "implemented before the election".

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

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was banned 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, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her return but to date India has expressed no readiness to agree.

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

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

Recently, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

Although the punishment offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or displayed repentance 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 country."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not finality for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We support numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

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