Sirajul Islam Rubel

Smiles, whispers, and uneasy silence as 16 former ministers and high officials brought to ICT-1

The prosecution yesterday formally charged 28 people, including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 23 top and mid-ranking current and former army officers, at International Crimes Tribunal-1 in two cases of enforced disappearances, secret detention, and torture in the 15 years of her rule.

Those accused in cases filed with the International Crimes Tribunal will not be able to hold or run for public office once formal charges are pressed against them.

Four senior Awami League leaders, including former law minister Anisul Huq and deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s former adviser Salman F Rahman, may soon be formally charged with crimes against humanity in connection with the July uprising, according to the prosecution.

Senior leaders of both organisations say the reforms may include a leadership shake-up, reduction in organisational posts

Any individual formally charged at the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) will be deemed ineligible to remain an MP or contest elections.

In a dramatic testimony before the International Crimes Tribunal-1 yesterday, former inspector general of police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun said the mass killings during last year’s July uprising were carried out on direct orders of then prime minister Sheikh Hasina and home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal.

The father of Abu Sayed, a student of Begum Rokeya University (BRU) in Rangpur who was killed in police firing on July 16 last year, yesterday appealed to the International Crimes Tribunal-2 to ensure justice for his son before his own death.

In an audio conversation on July 14 last year with then Dhaka University vice-chancellor ASM Maksud Kamal, deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina likened the protesters to “Razakars” and said they would meet the same fate as those executed for 1971 war crimes.

Just as the clock struck 2:25pm, a wave of jubilation swept through Manik Mia Avenue in Dhaka as slogans rang out and hundreds of balloons floated skyward, all commemorating the anniversary of the historic day when deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country.

The trial of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her two top aides began yesterday at the International Crimes Tribunal-1, with a testimony from the first prosecution witness, a survivor of police atrocities during the 2024 July uprising.

Law enforcers have managed to arrest only 73 out of the 206 accused after the ICT issued warrants for their arrests

Months-long investigation by The Daily Star indicates state forces increased deployment of lethal weapons after the ousted PM authorised their use

Siblings Aryan Ashraf Nafi and Tania Ashraf Nazia lie side by side at the intensive care unit (ICU) of the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, their small bodies covered in bandages.

ICT prosecutor hints

Shilpi Begum’s life changed forever when her only son, Mehedi Hasan, was shot dead during a protest last July.

Tens of thousands of holidaymakers left Dhaka by road, rail, and river yesterday to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha at home, enjoying mostly hassle-free journeys ahead of the 10-day Eid vacation.

Almost 10 months after the fall of her regime, Sheikh Hasina and her two top aides were charged with five counts of crimes against humanity yesterday.

A ruckus broke out at the International Crimes Tribunal yesterday as some of the 19 high-profile accused, including former ministers and senior bureaucrats, were brought into the courtroom in handcuffs.

In Dhaka, it was the law enforcers who turned on the people they were supposed to protect. It was the law enforcers who preyed upon protesters during the July uprising. But in Chattogram, it was different. The killers were not in uniform. They came clad in helmets and masks, guns ablaze. And now investigators say they have the names of the suspects.