Bangladesh to pursue criminal charges against Hasina at International Court
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The interim government of Bangladesh, led by Muhammad Yunus, is likely to pursue a case against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and members of her Awami League party at the International Criminal Court (ICC), as Yunus reportedly discussed charging them with crimes against humanity during a meeting with ICC prosecutor Karim A Khan in Dhaka on Wednesday.
The charges stem from allegations of killings and enforced disappearances of dissidents during a public uprising against Hasina's government in July and August. The protests, triggered by widespread dissatisfaction after Hasina's 16-year tenure, culminated in her resignation and subsequent departure to India on 5 August. Yunus, a Nobel laureate economist, assumed leadership of the interim government on 8 August.
During the meeting, Khan revealed that his office had sought a warrant for the arrest of Myanmar's military leader, Min Aung Hlaing, for crimes against humanity targeting Rohingya Muslims. He assured Bangladesh of the ICC’s cooperation with the country’s International Crimes Tribunal, which has already issued an arrest warrant for Hasina and her associates.
Yunus and Khan also discussed the ongoing Rohingya crisis, which has seen over 700,000 Rohingya Muslims flee to Bangladesh since Myanmar's military launched a crackdown in Rakhine state in 2017.
More than 6,000 people were killed in the first month of the military operation. The two leaders explored measures to address the crisis, including Yunus’s proposal for a United Nations-guaranteed safe zone in Rakhine state to facilitate the eventual return of displaced individuals.
Plans for a global conference on the Rohingya issue, scheduled for 2025 and endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly, were endorsed. Yunus highlighted the critical need to address the long-term implications of Rohingya children growing up in refugee camps, emphasising the risk of instability if their plight remains unresolved.
Bangladesh, a signatory to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, expressed its readiness for further collaboration with the court. Khaliliur Rahman, Bangladesh’s High Representative on Rohingya Affairs, along with other senior officials, participated in the discussions with Khan.
