Sheikh Hasina has no legal option but to face execution, says Bangladesh prosecutor

Bangladesh’s Chief Prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal Muhammad Aminul Islam on Tuesday said that ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has no legal option but to face execution of her death sentence if she returns to the country, The Daily Star reported.

Islam made the remarks a day after it was reported that Hasina had applied for a new passport and national identity card to facilitate her return to Bangladesh, Prothom Alo reported.

The prosecutor’s remarks came amid a wave of arson attacks and crude bomb explosions fuelled by tensions over Hasina’s stated intention to return to the country in December, PTI reported.

Islam said that the 30-day period for filing an appeal against the November 2025 verdict sentencing her to death had expired.

Hasina had been sentenced to death by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal in November 2025 for crimes against humanity in connection with the deadly crackdown on protesters in 2024.

Islam was quoted as saying that the tribunal’s law did not allow an appeal beyond the period and that there was no alternative to enforcing the sentence.

He also said there was no legal basis for issuing a passport or travel document to someone sentenced to death. Referring to the Bangladesh Passport Order, he said its provisions restrict issuing passports to persons convicted of certain offences, including those sentenced to...

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