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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the unrest during 2024.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and applauding as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the police spokesperson told media outlets.

The student-led uprising last year commenced through calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by media examinations earlier this year indicated she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

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

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government headed by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the ballot.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; for that reason I am disappointed," he stated further.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed media outlets. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this state."

The activist added that the punishment was not closure for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.