Bangladesh prosecutor says Sheikh Hasina can't appeal death sentence

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has exhausted all legal options to challenge her death sentence and now faces execution, Aminul Islam, the country’s chief war-crimes prosecutor, said.

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal sentenced Hasina to death in absentia in November 2025 over the crackdown on the 2024 student-led uprising, which the United Nations estimates killed as many as 1,400 people. Hasina, who fled to India after the uprising ended her 15-year rule, denies wrongdoing, while Bangladesh has sought her extradition.

Hasina had 30 days to appeal the verdict but filed no challenge while remaining abroad, Islam told reporters in Dhaka on Tuesday. She has now lost the right to appeal, he said. Emails sent to India’s Foreign Ministry and an address used by Hasina remained unanswered.

“With the appeal window closed and no other remedy left, execution is the only option remaining under the law,” Islam said.

Hasina has sought a new Bangladeshi passport and national identity card to facilitate her planned return from India in December, according to a letter from her lawyers seen by Bloomberg. Her previous documents were revoked after her ouster, and she has said she intends to return and surrender before a court.

Protests by supporters of Hasina’s banned Awami League intensified Tuesday, with a bus driver killed and at least 10 vehicles set on fire as arson and crude bomb attacks spread across Bangladesh. Police have linked the unrest to supporters of the former ruling party and stepped up deployments to contain the violence.

The prosecutor also rejected claims on social media that the sentence can’t be carried out until the High Court confirms it. While death sentences in ordinary criminal cases require such approval, he said verdicts by the crimes tribunal don’t.

“If Sheikh Hasina genuinely wishes to return, our clear advice is for her to submit a written application to the Indian government requesting to be returned to Bangladesh under the Extradition Treaty,” Islam said.