Bangladesh’s interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel peace laureate, is increasingly using the recently amended counterterrorism law to arrest alleged supporters of the deposed Awami League government, Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

The United Nations human rights team in Bangladesh should immediately seek the release of those arbitrarily detained and encourage the authorities to uphold rights and prosecute all those who use unlawful political violence.

The interim government took office in August 2024 after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government was toppled following three weeks of protests in which 1,400 people were killed. On May 12, 2025, the interim government ordered a “temporary” ban on the Awami League, using new authority under draconian am

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