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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity due to her harsh response on youth demonstrations which resulted in her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom died during the disturbances in the previous year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and injured had called for tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards before the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative Jisanul Haque informed press agencies.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by external reviews in previous months indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

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

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her extradition but to date India has shown no willingness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disappointed," he continued.

Recently, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The anger against the former leader and the Awami League has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

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

"We assist multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a regular participant of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.