Latest news with #ChowdhuryAbdullahalMamun
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Bangladesh's ousted Sheikh Hasina charged with crimes against humanity
Bangladesh's ousted leader Sheikh Hasina has been formally charged with crimes against humanity after being accused of ordering a deadly crackdown against anti-government protests last year that left more than 1,400 people dead. Hasina, who fled the country on 5 August last year, was charged in absentia by a three-judge panel on Thursday. She remains in hiding in neighbouring India and has ignored formal requests for her to return. Bangladeshi prosecutors have spent months gathering evidence to bring Hasina to trial for alleged crimes committed during her 15 years in power, including the mass killing of students who rose up against her authoritarian regime in July last year. The panel, called the international crimes tribunal, indicted Hasina, her former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan and the former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah al-Mamun on five charges, including crimes against humanity. Prosecutors allege that Hasina was the 'mastermind, conductor and superior commander' of the targeted violence against student-led protests that erupted across Bangladesh and eventually led to the fall of her government. As widely documented by human rights groups, the police fired live ammunition at protesters across the country, leading to mass casualties, and arbitrarily arrested tens of thousands of civilians in an attempt to crush the uprising. Lawyers have argued that orders for the killings came directly from Hasina, citing leaked audio files and other documents left behind when she fled the country in a helicopter. Hasina's Awami League party condemned the indictment and described the tribunal as a kangaroo court, despite Hasina having established it in 2009 to investigate crimes committed during the 1971 Bangladesh war of independence. 'We condemn in strongest term the indictment against our party president and other leaders as we assert that this step marks another testament to the ongoing witch hunt against our party,' the party wrote on X. The tribunal has already issued three arrest warrants for Hasina. It also sentenced her to six months in jail earlier this month for contempt of court after a leaked audio recording emerged of her saying: 'There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a licence to kill 227 people.' Hasina's trial for crimes against humanity charges will begin on 3 August. Prosecutors said al-Mamun had already pleaded guilty and had agreed to testify as a state witness against his accomplices. It remains unclear whether Hasina will be forcibly brought back to Bangladesh to face the mounting accusations against her, including widespread corruption. The interim government, led Mohammad Yunus, confirmed it had sent India several extradition requests, but that they had so far been ignored. Yunus's government has expressed repeated frustration at India for continuing to give Hasina – who was closely allied to Delhi while in power – a safe haven and allowing her to make 'false statements' intended to destabilise the country. Yunus has pledged that Bangladesh will have its first election since Hasina's fall by April 2026, but the Awami League has been banned from taking part.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Bangladesh's ousted Sheikh Hasina charged with crimes against humanity
Bangladesh's ousted leader Sheikh Hasina has been formally charged with crimes against humanity after being accused of ordering a deadly crackdown against anti-government protests last year that left more than 1,400 people dead. Hasina, who fled the country on 5 August last year, was charged in absentia by a three-judge panel on Thursday. She remains in hiding in neighbouring India and has ignored formal requests for her to return. Bangladeshi prosecutors have spent months gathering evidence to bring Hasina to trial for alleged crimes committed during her 15 years in power, including the mass killing of students who rose up against her authoritarian regime in July last year. The panel, called the international crimes tribunal, indicted Hasina, her former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan and the former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah al-Mamun, on five charges, including crimes against humanity. Prosecutors allege that Hasina was the 'mastermind, conductor and superior commander' of the targeted violence against student-led protests that erupted across Bangladesh and eventually led to the fall of her government. As widely documented by human rights groups, the police fired live ammunition at protesters across the country, leading to mass casualties, and arbitrarily arrested tens of thousands of civilians as they tried to crush the uprising. Lawyers have argued that orders for the killings came directly from Hasina, citing leaked audio files and other documents left behind when she fled the country in a helicopter. Hasina's Awami League party condemned the indictment and described the tribunal as a kangaroo court, despite Hasina having established it in 2009 to investigate crimes committed during the 1971 Bangladesh war of independence. 'We condemn in strongest term the indictment against our party president and other leaders as we assert that this step marks another testament to the ongoing witch hunt against our party,' the party wrote on X. The tribunal has already issued three arrest warrants for Hasina. It also sentenced her to six months in jail earlier this month for contempt of court after a leaked audio recording emerged of her saying: 'There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a license to kill 227 people.' Hasina's trial for crimes against humanity charges will begin on 3 August. Prosecutors said al-Mamun had already pleaded guilty and had agreed to testify as a state witness against his accomplices. It remains unclear whether Hasina will be forcibly brought back to Bangladesh to face the mounting accusations against her, including widespread corruption. The interim government, led Mohammad Yunus, confirmed it had sent India several extradition requests, but that they had so far been ignored. Yunus's government has expressed repeated frustration at India for continuing to give Hasina – who was closely allied to Delhi while in power – a safe haven and allowing her to make 'false statements' intended to destabilise the country. Yunus has pledged that Bangladesh will have its first election since Hasina's fall by April 2026, but the Awami League has been banned from taking part.
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Bangladesh tribunal indicts ex-PM Hasina over protester deaths
Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has indicted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and two senior officials over alleged crimes against humanity linked to a deadly crackdown on protesters during last year's July uprising. The tribunal, led by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder and comprising justices Shafiul Alam Masud and Mohitul Enam Chowdhury, formally charged Hasina on Thursday. Proceedings will begin on August 3 with opening statements, followed by the first witness testimony. Hasina, who fled to India following a student-led uprising last August, had been facing several charges. Earlier this month, in a separate ruling, she was sentenced to six months in prison for contempt of court by the ICT. That had marked the first time she had received a formal sentence in any of the cases. Chief Prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam said that the sentence delivered in absentia will take effect if Hasina is arrested or voluntarily returns to Bangladesh. The two other accused on Thursday are former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah al-Mamun. While al-Mamun appeared before the court and remains in custody, both Hasina and Kamal have fled abroad. The charges stem from Hasina's now ousted government's violent response to mass demonstrations, which critics say resulted in widespread human rights abuses and hundreds of deaths. Hasina, who now lives in self-imposed exile in India after being deposed following a 15-year rule, has dismissed the tribunal as politically motivated.
Al Arabiya
5 days ago
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Bangladesh tribunal indicts ousted Prime Minister Hasina over deaths of protesters
A special tribunal on Thursday indicted Bangladesh's ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by accepting charges of crimes against humanity filed against her in connection with a mass uprising in which hundreds of students were killed last year. A three-member panel headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder indicted Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah al-Mamun on five charges. Hasina and Khan are being tried in absentia. The tribunal opened the trial on June 5 and had asked Hasina to appear before it. Authorities published newspaper advertisements asking Hasina, who has been in exile in India, and Khan to appear before the tribunal. Hasina has been in exile since Aug. 5, 2024. Bangladesh's interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus sent a formal request to India for Hasina's extradition, but India has not responded. Khan is possibly also in India. Al-Mamun was arrested and was in the dock on Thursday while the judges indicted them. On Thursday, al-Mamun pleaded guilty and told the tribunal that he would make a statement in favor of the prosecution at a later stage. The prosecution offered a leaked audio of Hasina and other documents as evidence to the tribunal. The tribunal later fixed Aug. 3 for the opening statement by the prosecution and Aug. 4 for recording witnesses' statements.
