Sheikh Hasina Refuses to Apologise for Deadly Crackdown, Calls Trial “Political Vengeance”

Ousted Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina has refused to apologise for the violent crackdown on student-led street protests that led to her downfall last year, in a rare and wide-ranging interview.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Hasina, accusing her of crimes against humanity for allegedly ordering security forces to open fire on demonstrators, leaving as many as 1,400 people dead. The former leader, who ruled Bangladesh for more than 15 years, is now living in exile in India.

Asked if she would apologise to the families of those killed, Hasina said she “mourns each and every child, sibling, cousin and friend we lost as a nation” and would continue to offer condolences. However, she firmly rejected claims that she ordered lethal force, insisting her party, the Awami League, is being unfairly excluded from contesting new elections under the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus.

Hasina said she would “neither be surprised nor intimidated” if the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced her to death, describing the proceedings as “a sham trial” motivated by political revenge. “The ICT is a sham court presided over by an unelected government consisting of my political opponents. Many of those opponents will stop at nothing to get rid of me,” she said.

She argued that the bloodshed during the protests was the result of “breakdowns in discipline among security forces on the ground,” not her direct orders. “As a leader, I ultimately take leadership responsibility, but the claim that I ordered or wished for the security forces to open fire on the crowds is simply wrong,” she added.

Hasina also claimed her government had launched an independent inquiry into the initial killings, but said it was later shut down by the interim administration that replaced her.

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