Formal charges against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will be submitted to the International Crimes Tribunal on Sunday, according to Prosecutor Gazi M.H. Tamim. With the tribunal’s permission, the court proceedings may be broadcast live on Bangladesh Television (BTV).
Tamim confirmed on Saturday (May 31) that the live telecast could take place during the hearing when the tribunal takes the charges into consideration.
Earlier, on May 12, the tribunal’s investigation agency submitted a report accusing Sheikh Hasina of crimes against humanity in connection with the July-August massacres. The report was formally handed over at the Chief Prosecutor’s office. It identifies Sheikh Hasina as the mastermind behind the July violence. This report will be officially presented to the court on Sunday.
At a press conference following the submission of the report, Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tazul Islam said that the investigation focused on crimes against humanity and mass killings committed during the July uprising. The agency filed charges against three individuals, naming Sheikh Hasina as the chief architect and superior commander behind the atrocities. The investigation was completed in six months and 28 days, resulting in five primary charges against her.
The first charge accuses Sheikh Hasina of inciting and provoking crimes against humanity through her July 14 press conference, where she allegedly labeled protesting students as descendants of war criminals (“razakars”). This rhetoric, the report claims, incited state forces, as well as ruling party affiliates such as the Awami League, Jubo League, and Chhatra League, to launch violent attacks against unarmed student protesters—resulting in killings, injuries, and other crimes.
The second charge involves direct orders from Sheikh Hasina. Investigators reportedly obtained phone call recordings in which she explicitly instructed state forces to use helicopters, drones, APCs, and lethal weapons to eliminate peaceful civilian demonstrators demanding justice and reform.
The remaining three charges are based on specific incidents of violence that allegedly occurred under her command. The charges detail how people were killed and the brutality involved. When asked, the Chief Prosecutor stated that Sheikh Hasina is being charged for every death and injury that occurred during the July-August period.
According to the investigation report, approximately 1,500 people were killed and over 25,000 injured—many of them shot. It also alleges widespread sexual violence against women, the burning of corpses, denial of medical treatment to the injured, and obstruction of post-mortem examinations. In one instance, Sheikh Hasina is said to have visited a hospital and instructed staff not to treat injured protesters. Patients reportedly begged to leave due to unbearable pain, but were not allowed to do so. In some cases, it was allegedly suggested that untreated injuries be left to rot.
Regarding arson attacks, Tazul Islam claimed that Sheikh Hasina ordered her own supporters to set fire to government installations in order to falsely blame the protesters.
