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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for human rights violations due to her harsh response on student-led protests which led to her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the turmoil during 2024.

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security before the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the authorities' representative stated to news organizations.

The student-led uprising last year started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

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

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews earlier this year implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, kin of those killed during the protests told media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

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

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

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the her former political organization, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted last month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but until now India has shown no willingness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am sad," he stated further.

The previous week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this state."

The advocate continued 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 now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, 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 standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.