[🇧🇩] International Crimes Tribunal Act & The Crimes Against Humanity

[Saif]

ICT rebukes govt for arrest warrant failure

The International Crimes Tribunal on Thursday rebuked the prosecution for failing to execute arrest warrants against suspects linked to the July-August 2024 genocide and crimes against humanity, and enforced disappearances during the ousted Awami League regime.

www.newagebd.net

ICT rebukes govt for arrest warrant failure
M Moneruzzaman 31 January, 2025, 00:30

The International Crimes Tribunal on Thursday rebuked the prosecution for failing to execute arrest warrants against suspects linked to the July-August 2024 genocide and crimes against humanity, and enforced disappearances during the ousted Awami League regime.

The three-judge tribunal, comprising Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, Md Shofiul Alam Mahmood, and retired judge Mohitul Haque Anam Chawdhury, also criticised the prosecution for missing its deadline to submit formal charges against suspects accused of crimes against humanity in the capital’s Jatrabari area during the student-led mass uprising.

The tribunal directed the prosecution to file applications seeking action against those failing to comply with the tribunal’s orders.

According to a source in the ICT’s investigation agency, they were now investigating 27 cases by merging a total of 190 complaints.

The agency received several complaints regarding crimes against humanity in Uttara, but merged them into a single case, the investigator gave an example.

Despite these ongoing investigations, the prosecution is yet to file formal charges in any of the 27 cases.

The tribunal on Thursday set April 6 for the prosecution to submit formal charges regarding the Jatrabari crimes, including the murder of Imam Hasan Taim on July 20, 2024.

It warned that the authorities would be held accountable if all suspects were not arrested as per existing warrants and if investigations were not completed within the extended timeframe.

During Thursday’s hearing, prosecutor BM Sultan Mahmud informed the tribunal that out of six accused in the Jatrabari case, only two—Tanzil Ahmed, former assistant commissioner of DMP’s Wari zone, and Abul Hossain, former officer-in-charge of Jatrabari police station— were arrested.

The two officers were produced before the tribunal on Thursday for a scheduled hearing.

When asked whether the prosecution was facing difficulties in executing arrest warrants, Sultan Mahmud alleged that law enforcement agencies were not cooperating with the investigation team.

He cited an instance where Dhaka Metropolitan Police high-ups refused to assist in arresting a suspect, prompting frustration from the tribunal.

‘Who will catch the accused? How will the trial proceed?’ the tribunal asked and instructed the prosecution to file an application against those disobeying the court’s orders.

‘We cannot understand what kind of investigation is going on,’ one of the judges expressed his disappointment and suggested the prosecution to seek government intervention.

Another judge criticised the lack of progress in arrests, pointing out that despite nearly 2,000 people being killed in the July-August atrocities, only 35 suspects were arrested.

Prosecutor Gazi Monwar Hossain Tamim informed the tribunal that so far, arrest warrants had been issued for 100 suspects linked to July-August crimes and enforced disappearances during the Awami League regime.

Among those facing arrest warrants are deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India on August 5, 2024, and several high-profile Awami League figures, including the party general secretary Obaidul Quader and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, and members of the law enforcement and intelligent agencies during the ousted regime of Sheikh Hasina.

The ICT was established in 2009 during the Awami League rule to try 1971 war crimes cases. Over the years, the tribunal disposed of 55 cases.

After the ouster of the Awami League regime amid a mass uprising on August 5, 2024, the interim government reconstituted the International Crimes Tribunal on October 14, 2024, to prosecute those responsible for 2024 July-August war crimes.​

 

[Saif]

MASS UPRISING: Victim families block Shahbagh for speedy trial

The families of a number of student-led mass uprising martyrs on Thursday morning blocked the Shahbagh crossing demanding speedy trial of those involved in the massacre.

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MASS UPRISING: Victim families block Shahbagh for speedy trial
Staff Correspondent 06 February, 2025, 15:25

Family members of the victims in the July-August student-led mass uprising block the Shahbagh crossing, demanding speedy trial of those involved in the massacre, in Dhaka on Thursday. | Focus Bangla photo

The families of a number of student-led mass uprising martyrs on Thursday morning blocked the Shahbagh crossing demanding speedy trial of those involved in the massacre.

They blocked the crossing for around seven and a half hours from 11:00am to 6:30pm to press home their three-point demand.

The blockade halted vehicular movement at the capital’s busy crossing causing huge traffic congestion on the nearby roads and immense sufferings to the commuters.

The demands are speedy trial of perpetrators after a fair investigation, state recognition of the martyrs, and monthly allowances for their families as well as rehabilitation of the martyrs’ families, said a protester, Gausullha Raju, also brother of martyr Abdullah Kabir.

They lifted the blockade after Jatiya Nagarik Committee chief organiser Sarjis Alam assured the protesters that meetings would be held between interim government advisers, including the chief adviser and representatives of the victim families within a few days to meet their logical demands.

‘It is unfortunate and shameful that victim families have taken to the streets,’ Sarjis said, adding that it will be the biggest limitation of the government if it fails to bring Awami League leaders and activists involved in the massacre to book.

The victims’ family members held a press conference at the end of January raising their 10-point demand and met the interim government advisers, Raju said, adding that the authorities assured the families of addressing their demands in a week.

‘We are left with no option but to hold the blockade as the authorities have not taken any initiative,’ added Raju.

Kabir’s sister Afsana Ahmed said that her brother was killed by ousted Awami League leaders at Mirpur 10 on August 4 and a case was filed with the Mirpur model police station on August 22.

‘Six months have passed but no one has been arrested,’ Afsana said, adding that all are busy with power politics and elections but no one is working to ensure justice.

Abdullah Al Maruf, brother of martyr Anwar, who was killed on August 5 at Mirpur, said that a case was filed with the Mirpur model police station three months ago but only one person was arrested in the case.

‘Ensuring the trial of the involved persons in July-August massacre should be the priority of the interim government, but we do not see any initiative for that,’ said Maruf.

He added that the victims’ family members would go for a tougher movement if the authorities do not take visible steps immediately to address their demands.

‘We will continue the blockade till our demands are met,’ said Maruf.

Shahbagh police officer-in-charge Mohammad Khalid Mansoor said that police tried to convince the protesters to withdraw the blockade but they refused and continued it.

In a statement, issued on Thursday, the interim government said that the trial of those involved in the July massacre was progressing in full swing.

‘The interim government is committed to ensuring justice and delivering appropriate punishment to the perpetrators of the genocide,’ read the statement.

According to government data, 834 people were killed and 11,551 injured during the uprising that began on July 1 with protests demanding quota reform in civil service jobs and culminated in the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League regime on August 5, 2024.

The government is still updating the data.​

 

[Saif]

MASS UPRISING: ICT orders arrest of seven people

The International Crimes Tribunal on Sunday issued arrest warrants against two police officers and five others for their alleged involvement in committing crimes against humanity in the capital’s Mohakhali, Rampura, and Uttara areas during the July-August mass uprising...

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MASS UPRISING: ICT orders arrest of seven people
Staff Correspondent 10 February, 2025, 00:12

The International Crimes Tribunal on Sunday issued arrest warrants against two police officers and five others for their alleged involvement in committing crimes against humanity in the capital’s Mohakhali, Rampura, and Uttara areas during the July-August mass uprising.

The two-member tribunal, led by its chairman Golam Mortuza Mozumder and member Mohammad Mohitul Haque Anam Chawdhury, passed the order.

The tribunal, however, withheld the identities of the accused at the prosecution’s request.

Prosecutor Gazi Monawar Hossain Tamim, in a brief message to journalists, said that former Uttara East police station officer-in-charge Mujibur Rahman was arrested at a place on the Dhaka University campus at about 3:00pm on Sunday.

Mujibur is one of the two police officers against whom the tribunal issued arrest warrants earlier in the day.

The former OC was later produced before the tribunal which ordered the jail authorities to keep him detained in connection with a case relating to crimes against humanity and genocide committed in Uttara during the mass uprising.

The tribunal also allowed the investigation agency to interrogate detained constable Mohammad Sujan Hossain for one day in connection with a case over the killing of seven people in the capital’s Chankharpul area during the uprising on August 5, 2024.

The orders were issued after hearings on four petitions moved by prosecutors Gazi Monawar Hossain Tamim and BM Sultan Mahmood.

Prosecutor Tamim told reporters that, since the tribunal’s reconstitution, arrest warrants were issued against 115 individuals in 18 cases.

Of them, 35 have been arrested and are currently in custody, he said.​

 

[Saif]

Disturbing accounts of ‘police abuse’

The night of July 27, 2024, still haunts her. A first-year law student of a private university, she still cannot forget how detectives surrounded her in a small room and groped her. On a table in front of her lay a blank paper for her to confess, according to her accounts to the International...

www.thedailystar.net

Disturbing accounts of ‘police abuse’
ICT sends DB officer to jail over custodial harassment during July uprising

The night of July 27, 2024, still haunts her. A first-year law student of a private university, she still cannot forget how detectives surrounded her in a small room and groped her. On a table in front of her lay a blank paper for her to confess, according to her accounts to the International Crimes Tribunal and The Daily Star.

Officers of the Detective Branch of police insisted that she tell them the whereabouts of the July uprising leaders. She refused. One officer then came close, leaned in, stroked her hair and groped her, saying she would be implicated in a case over the attack on BTV Bhaban, she said.

"I will see you in custody at night," she remembers him saying.

There was a pistol on the table. One officer picked it up dramatically and cocked. The metallic click echoed through the small room. He came closer and held the gun against her forehead. The officer's face inches away from the girl, he sneered, "Admit everything. Confess!"

The evening, that quickly turned into a nightmare for the university student, had begun with an unexpected phone call. She agreed to recount the details to The Daily Star on condition of anonymity.

The phone call had come from an unknown number but the young protester, aged 18, thought it was a fellow protester. Soon, she realised she was wrong, and quickly hung up the phone. Several more calls followed, but she did not pick up.

Then she received a message: Hello … [we are withholding the victim's name]. It's Javed. AC DB Ramna, Mintoo Road, Dhaka. Need to talk with you for our purpose & also for your safety."

In another message later that evening, she was told that detectives were waiting downstairs of her building and asked her to come down. When the girl's parents refused, they were told to bring their daughter to the Uttara Paschim Police Station.

"As soon as I went to the station, they started hurling expletives at me … even in front of my parents."

The Daily Star could not independently verify her accounts. We also could not contact the officer-in-charge of the police station for comments.

She said that at one point, the cops asked her parents to leave the room, but the father refused. "They pushed my father who has a heart condition. He fell to the ground."

With her father out of the room, one police officer, aged over 40, came close. "He touched my shoulder and stroked my hair. I froze in fear,"

He also threatened her with teaching her a lesson through the now infamous Harun-or Rashid, better known as DB Harun.

But she still refused to give any details about her fellow protesters. Then one officer pulled a stunt with the gun on the table. One officer cocked it, put it against her head and pressed the trigger. "I thought I would die. But there were no rounds in the chamber."

They finally let her go at 1:00am on July 28.

The International Crimes Tribunal yesterday sent Javed Iqbal, the then ADC of DB, to jail upon arrest in relation to this incident. Investigators told The Daily Star that they have already identified the police officers who were present in that room on the night of July 27, tracking the location of their phones.​

 

[Saif]

Law adviser’s remark on verdict timeline irks ICT

The International Crimes Tribunal on Wednesday expressed dissatisfaction over law adviser Asif Nazrul’s Tuesday statement in which he hoped that the ICT would deliver verdicts in three or four cases of the killings during the July-August mass uprising by October...

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Law adviser’s remark on verdict timeline irks ICT
Staff Correspondent 12 February, 2025, 19:33

The International Crimes Tribunal on Wednesday expressed dissatisfaction over law adviser Asif Nazrul’s Tuesday statement in which he hoped that the ICT would deliver verdicts in three or four cases of the killings during the July-August mass uprising by October.

The three-member tribunal, comprising Chairman Golam Mortuza Mozumder and members Md Shofiul Alam Mahmood and Mohammad Mohitul Haque Anam Chawdhury, raised concerns over the remark while hearing a petition from prosecutor Gazi Monwar Hossain Tamim.

The prosecutor sought two more months to complete the investigation into an enforced disappearance case against a former director general of the National Telecommunication Monitoring Centre, major general Ziaul Ahsan, and 11 others.

The tribunal rebuked Tamim, noting that despite repeated time extensions, the prosecution had yet to submit formal charges.

It wanted to know how the government could set an October deadline for verdicts when investigations were still incomplete.

‘The tribunal is independent. We will not deliver verdicts based on any individual’s statement,’ the tribunal said and added that such comments could create a misleading impression among the public.

It directed Tamim to inform his client to refrain from making such remarks in the future.

Addressing a press conference at his ministry in Dhaka on Tuesday, Asif Nazrul said, ‘I hope that verdicts in three or four cases currently under trial at the ICT will be delivered by October.’

After the court proceedings, Tamim told reporters that the tribunal was displeased with the law adviser’s statement on a sub-judice matter and had cautioned the prosecution against making similar remarks.

‘Actions will be taken if such comments are made again,’ he quoted the tribunal as saying.

The tribunal granted the prosecution two more months to complete its investigation into the case of enforced disappearance during the 15 years of the Awami League regime.

Of the accused, only Ziaul is now detained in jail. He is also accused in multiple cases related to the July-August 2024 crimes against humanity.

The ICT On January 6 issued arrest warrants against 12 suspects, including Ziaul, in the enforced disappearance case.

Other accused individuals in the case include the ousted prime minister and AL president Sheikh Hasina, her security and defence adviser Tarique Ahmed Siddique, former inspector general of Police Benazir Ahmed, former chief of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime unit Md Asaduzzaman, retired Lieutenant Colonel Moksurul Haque, five former DGFI chiefs—retired Lieutenant General Md Akbar Hossain, retired Major General Md Saiful Abedin, retired Lieutenant General Md Saiful Alam, retired Lieutenant General Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury, and retired Major General Hamidul Huq, and former Counter Terrorism and Intelligence Bureau Director Mohammad Towhid-ul-Islam.

Ziaul’s lawyer and sister, Naznin Nahar, appeared on his behalf during the proceedings.

In a separate development, the ICT’s investigation agency on Wednesday arrested Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s former assistant commissioner (Badda) Rajan Kumar Saha in connection with crimes against humanity allegedly committed in the capital’s Rampura area during the mass uprising.

The tribunal sent him to jail.

He is among two serving police officers for whom the tribunal had issued arrest warrants on the same day in separate cases.​