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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for atrocities stemming from her crackdown on youth demonstrations which led to her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people died during the disturbances during 2024.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

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

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection ahead of the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year started with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

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

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of further participants, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader authenticated by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations told press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, 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 misused their authority".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her repatriation but until now India has shown no willingness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her former home minister and security forces head.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this country."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not finality for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We support numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a separation from Hasina and the old leadership," he said.