Bangladesh court indicts ex-PM Hasina over enforced disappearances
International Crimes Tribunal issues arrest warrant for former PM Sheikh Hasina and 29 others accused of overseeing secret detention and torture during her rule
DHAKA, Bangladesh (MNTV) — Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has accepted two cases against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, accusing her of crimes against humanity tied to the enforced disappearances of political dissidents during her administration.
A three-member bench led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder took cognizance of the charges on Wednesday and issued arrest warrants for Hasina and 29 other officials, according to prosecutors. The tribunal’s move marks a historic moment for a country long haunted by allegations of state-sanctioned abductions and secret detentions.
According to bdnews24.com, ICT Chief Prosecutor Md Tajul Islam confirmed that formal charges had been submitted against 30 people, seeking their arrest for their alleged roles in torture and disappearances carried out by elite security agencies.
The first case implicates Hasina, her former defence adviser retired Major General Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and 15 others in connection with the Rapid Action Battalion’s Task Force Interrogation Unit, where political detainees were allegedly tortured and disappeared.
The second case involves Hasina and 13 others, including former heads of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), accused of overseeing similar abuses at the Joint Interrogation Centre. Each case contains five charges of crimes against humanity.
The tribunal also accepted a separate case against four people — including a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) officer — over the fatal shooting of a protester during the July movement in Dhaka’s Rampura area.
Human rights groups and victims’ families have for years accused the Awami League government of operating clandestine detention facilities, locally referred to as “Ayna Ghor,” or “house of mirrors.” These sites allegedly housed abducted opposition figures who were held without trial and subjected to severe torture.
A government-appointed commission led by retired judge Moinul Islam Chowdhury, formed in August 2024 to investigate the disappearances, directly implicated Hasina as an “instructor of disappearances” in its first interim report.
The report also named senior officials including Tarique, retired Major General Ziaul Ahsan of the National Telecommunication Monitoring Centre, and senior police officers Md Monirul Islam and Harunor Rashid.
The commission’s second report, submitted in June, expanded on those findings, citing systematic involvement by the police, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), the Detective Branch (DB), the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, and intelligence agencies such as DGFI, NSI, and BGB.
The DGFI was accused of running multiple secret detention sites, including “Ayna Ghor,” where victims were allegedly kept in isolation.
Earlier this year, interim government head Muhammad Yunus visited three of the facilities, signaling a push toward accountability. Military officials have also pledged cooperation. “If evidence of involvement in the enforced disappearances is found, the Army will take legal action,” said Col Md Shafiqul Islam of the Military Operations Directorate in July.
The interim government has since moved to classify enforced disappearances as a capital offense — a step hailed by rights advocates as crucial for ending decades of impunity for state-backed abductions.
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