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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for human rights violations stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the unrest in the previous year.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

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

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was proud of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and applauding as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 began with requests to remove government job quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by investigative sources earlier this year suggested she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

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

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

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".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; for that reason I am sad," he continued.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "Both she and the organization has apologised or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this country."

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

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, 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 distancing from Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.