AdvertisementAdvertisementThen-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addresses the media at a vandalised metro station in Mirpur, after anti-quota protests, on Jul 25, 2024. (File photo: Bangladesh Prime Minister's Office via AFP)13 Nov 2025 04:50PM Bookmark Bookmark WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedInRead a summary of this article on FAST.Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try.Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FASTFAST DHAKA: Bangladeshi judges will issue the hugely anticipated verdict in the crimes against humanity trial of fugitive former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Nov 17, the chief prosecutor said on Thursday (Nov 13).Hasina, 78, has defied court orders to return from India to attend her trial on charges of ordering a deadly crackdown in a failed attempt to suppress a student-led uprising that saw her removal."Justice will be served according to the law," chief prosecutor Tajul Islam told reporters."We have completed a long journey and are now in its final phase. The court will pronounce the verdict on the 17th."Hasina's trial in absentia, which began on Jun 1, heard months of testimony alleging she ordered mass killings.According to the United Nations, up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024 in her failed bid to hold on to power.Prosecutors have filed five charges, including failure to prevent murder, amounting to crimes against humanity under Bangladeshi law. They have sought the death penalty if she is found guilty."We hope the court will exercise its prudence and wisdom, that the thirst for justice will be fulfilled, and that this verdict will mark an end to crimes against humanity," Islam added.Hasina has denied all the charges and called her trial a "jurisprudential joke".Her co-accused include former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal - also a fugitive - and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who is in custody and has pleaded guilty.Tensions are high as parties gear up for elections slated for February.Shooting at start of Bangladesh election campaign kills oneHasina's outlawed Awami League had called for a nationwide "lockdown" on Thursday, and there was a heavy deployment of security forces around the court, with armoured vehicles manning checkpoints.A string of crude bombs has been set off across Dhaka this month, mainly petrol bombs hurled at everything from buildings linked to the government of interim leader Muhammad Yunus to buses and Christian sites.One man was burned to death on Nov 11 when his parked bus was set on fire.Bangladesh's foreign ministry on Wednesday summoned India's envoy to Dhaka, demanding that New Delhi block Hasina from talking to journalists."Harbouring such a notorious fugitive ... and granting her a platform to spew hatred ... are unhelpful to fostering a constructive bilateral relationship between the two countries," the foreign ministry said, according to Bangladesh's state-run BSS news agency.Source: AFP/dyNewsletterMorning BriefSubscribe to CNA’s Morning BriefAn automated curation of our top stories to start your day.Sign up for our newslettersGet our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inboxSubscribe hereGet the CNA appStay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best storiesDownload hereGet WhatsApp alertsJoin our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat appJoin hereAlso worth readingContent is loading...Expand to read the full storyGet bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try.Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FASTFAST