Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has denounced the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal verdict sentencing her to death, calling the proceedings “rigged” and conducted by “an unelected government with no democratic mandate.” This is her first response to the ruling on the August 2024 killings linked to the student uprising that led to her ouster.

Hasina said the death sentence reflected the “murderous intent of extremist figures within the interim government” to eliminate Bangladesh’s last elected leader and marginalise the Awami League. The tribunal had found her guilty of ordering a violent crackdown on student-led protests last year, during which the UN estimates up to 1,400 people were killed. Prosecutors told the court they had evidence she directly authorised the

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