Bangladesh issues second arrest warrant for exiled Hasina

Published
0

A Bangladeshi court has issued a second arrest warrant for exiled former leader Sheikh Hasina, this time for her alleged role in enforced disappearances, the chief prosecutor said on Monday.

Dhaka has already issued an arrest warrant on charges of crimes against humanity for 77-year-old Hasina, who fled to old ally India in August after she was toppled by a student-led revolution.

Her 15-year tenure saw widespread human rights abuses, including the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of her political opponents.

Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of the domestic International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), said the second warrant relates to enforced disappearances during her rule.

More than 500 people were allegedly abducted by Bangladeshi security personnel, with some detained in secret facilities for years.

Victims have begun coming forward since Hasina’s ouster with harrowing accounts of their ordeals.

“The court issued a warrant against Sheikh Hasina and 11 others, including her military adviser, military personnel, and other law enforcement officials,” Islam told reporters.

Bangladesh asked India in December to send Hasina back to face trial, a demand to which Delhi declined to respond.

Islam said the court wanted to go ahead with the trial.

“We want to ensure the trial concludes as soon as possible, but that doesn’t mean we will break the law or impose a verdict without due process,” he told reporters.

Dozens of Hasina’s allies have been taken into custody since her government collapsed, accused of involvement in a police crackdown that killed more than 700 people during the unrest that led to her ouster.

Opinion

Editorial

Farewell to arms?
Updated 03 Aug, 2026

Farewell to arms?

PALESTINIAN resistance group Hamas recently made a major concession by agreeing to give up its weapons. It should be...
Unplanned future
03 Aug, 2026

Unplanned future

A PROJECTION that Pakistan’s population could reach 400m by 2040 should not be treated as another dramatic number...
No more torture
03 Aug, 2026

No more torture

EVEN the best laws on the books are worth little unless the state shows the willingness to enforce them. This is...
Urban flooding
Updated 02 Aug, 2026

Urban flooding

THE warning from the disaster management and weather authorities that a new monsoon spell could trigger urban...
Fatal workplaces
02 Aug, 2026

Fatal workplaces

THE methane explosion near Quetta that killed 34 coal miners is the latest entry in Pakistan’s long register of...
Dual standards
02 Aug, 2026

Dual standards

IT appears that the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party has fallen foul of the Election Commission of Pakistan. A...