A Bangladeshi court has issued an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been living in exile since August after being ousted from power by a student-led revolution. The warrant, issued on Thursday, calls for her to be presented in court on November 18, according to Mohammad Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal.
The former leader, who ruled Bangladesh for 15 years, is accused of overseeing widespread human rights abuses, including mass detentions and extrajudicial killings of political opponents during her time in office. “Sheikh Hasina was at the helm of those who committed massacres, killings, and crimes against humanity from July to August,” Islam stated, describing the arrest order as a significant moment for the country.
Sheikh Hasina, now 77, has not appeared in public since fleeing to India, with her last known location being a military airbase near New Delhi. Her presence in India has sparked diplomatic tensions between the two neighboring countries. Bangladesh has revoked her diplomatic passport, and while there is an extradition treaty in place between the two nations, a clause allows for refusal if the charges are deemed to be politically motivated.
Hasina’s government had established the controversial International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in 2010 to investigate war crimes committed during the 1971 independence war against Pakistan. However, the tribunal has been heavily criticized by the United Nations and human rights organizations for procedural flaws and for being used as a tool to suppress political adversaries.
Currently, multiple cases accusing Hasina of involvement in the mass murder of protesters are being investigated by the court, further intensifying the political crisis in Bangladesh.
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