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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances last year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards prior to the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and applauding as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative Jisanul Haque informed media outlets.

The protest movement led by students last year started with calls to eliminate state employment quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by media examinations earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest told news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" 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 her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the vote.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but until now India has expressed no readiness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I am unable to challenge because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

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

The advocate continued that the sentence was not closure for the kin of those killed and injured.

"We support several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element 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.