[🇧🇩] The International Crimes Tribunal-1----Charging Hasina and her accomplices

[Saif]

Hasina, Tarique Siddique, 11 DGFI officers face trial

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday began the trial of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former defence adviser retired major general Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and 11 serving and retired DGFI and army officers for their alleged involvement in...

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Hasina, Tarique Siddique, 11 DGFI officers face trial
Staff Correspondent 20 January, 2026, 00:01

Sheikh Hasina and Tarique Ahmed Siddique. | File photo

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday began the trial of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former defence adviser retired major general Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and 11 serving and retired DGFI and army officers for their alleged involvement in crimes against humanity during the Awami League regime.

The charges against them include enforced disappearance, abduction, illegal detention, and torture of people who hold dissenting views against the regime.

The three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, began the trial by recording testimony of enforced disappearance victim Hummam Quader Chowdhury, the younger son of executed BNP leader Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury.

Hummam is also a BNP candidate for the Chattogram-7 constituency in the next general election.

Before his testimony, chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam submitted his opening statement, describing the case as the tribunal’s first trial over enforced disappearances.

Three detained army officers were in the dock.

10 other accused, including Hasina and Tarique Siddique, are in hiding and facing the trial in absentia.

The tribunal set January 25 for cross-examining Hummam by the defence of the three detained army officers and by the tribunal-appointed counsel for the 10 absconding accused.

The tribunal charged the 13 accused on December 18, 2025.

Hummam, testifying before the tribunal, demanded the trial of those who ordered, carried out and facilitated his enforced disappearance, secret detention and torture.

He sought capital punishment for Sheikh Hasina, former senior military and intelligence officials, and their associates for their alleged roles in the crime.

He named former DGFI directors lieutenant general Md Akbar Hossain and major general Md Saiful Abedin, and brigadier general Tawhidul Islam, former director of the Counter Terrorism and Intelligence Bureau, as key officials involved in the crime.

Hummam said that he was picked up at about 9:00am on August 4, 2016, near Bangshal police station while he was on his way to the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court.

His mother, private security personnel and driver were accompanying him in a car from their Dhanmondi home.

He said that he was first taken to the officer-in-charge’s room at Bangshal police station and later shifted to the Detective Branch, where the then DB chief Monirul Islam publicly denied his arrest.

That night, he said, he was moved in a microbus, blindfolded and handcuffed. He believed the vehicle passed Mohakhali flyover and the Prime Minister’s Office area before he was handed over to another group.

He testified that he was later taken to a detention facility inside the cantonment area.

He said that he realised this from the condition of the roads and the sound of an old gate opening.

Hummam said that he was sprayed on the face and nose, taken to a cell, seated on a chair and medically examined.

He testified that he regularly heard Quran recitation and crying from a neighbouring cell. After August 5, 2024, he learnt that the detainee was Brigadier general Abdullahil Amaan Azmi, son of former Jamaat chief Ghulam Azam.

He said that this made him realise that many people were secretly detained in the same building.

Hummam said that the light and ceiling fan in his cell were kept on at all times as part of psychological torture. The cell had a table and a plastic chair. The table bore an inscription reading ‘CTIB – Counter Terrorism and Intelligence Bureau.’

He said that he was labelled ‘VIP-1’ and given medicines without labels during illness. When a swelling developed on his leg, he underwent a surgery inside the cell under local anaesthesia.

He testified that he was injected repeatedly, causing burning sensations, and was interrogated in a separate cell while blindfolded and handcuffed.

During interrogation, he was questioned about alleged links with ISI, RAW, CIA and anti-Awami League activities.

Hummam said that he heard individuals speaking Hindi outside his cell. One person identified him as the son of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury.

He testified that he was stripped and photographed during his first interrogation and later given clothes.

He said that he marked the wall of his cell with his initials ‘HQC’ and the date of his enforced disappearance. He remained detained for about seven months.

Hummam said that he identified the detention centre—popularly known as Aynaghar—when he visited it with the chief adviser of the interim government after August 5, 2024.

He said that the official name of the facility was JIC.

He testified that he was released on March 2, 2017, and dropped near his Dhanmondi home.

His house guard initially failed to recognise him due to his long hair and beard.

Besides Hasina and Tarique Siddique, the other accused in the case are serving major generals Sheikh Md Sarwar Hossain and Kabir Ahmed, and brigadier generals Mahbub Rahman Siddique and Ahmed Tanvir Mazhar Siddique, and retired army officers lieutenant general Md Akbar Hossain (former DGFI director general), major general Md Saiful Abedin (former DGFI DG), lieutenant general Md Saiful Alam (former DGFI DG), lieutenant general Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury (former DGFI DG), major general Hamidul Huq (former DGFI DG), major general Mohammad Towhidul-Ul Islam (former DGFI director) and lieutenant colonel Mokhsurul Haq.

Three of the serving officers, Sarwar Hossain, Mahbub Rahman and Tanvir Mazhar, are now detained in the sub jail inside the Dhaka Cantonment.

The prosecution alleged that the crimes were committed at the Joint Interrogation Cell of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence inside Dhaka Cantonment.

According to the charges, 26 people, including former brigadier general Abdullahil Amaan Azmi, Chittagong Hill Tracts-based UPDF leader Michael Chakma and Hummam, were forcibly disappeared, abducted, tortured and illegally detained at the JIC between July 2, 2017 and March 4, 2020.

The prosecution said that the five former DGFI directors general were placed on forced retirement after the fall of the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024 amid a mass uprising.

The JIC case is the second enforced disappearance case linked to the Joint Interrogation Cell at the DGFI’s secret detention facility during the Awami League regime.

The ICT-1 is scheduled for today to begin the trial of another enforced disappearance case against 17 accused allegedly involved in the second phase of abduction, detention and torture of people at the Task Force for Interrogation Cell run by the Rapid Action Battalion.

Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman, Tarique Siddique, and 14 former RAB officers, including 11 army officers deputed to the RAB-1 and the three police officers deputed to RAB as directors general, are accused in the case.​

 

[Saif]

ICT begins trial of Hasina, Kamal, 11 army officers

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Wednesday began the trial over enforced disappearances against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, former defence adviser retired major general Tarique Ahmed Siddique, three...

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ICT begins trial of Hasina, Kamal, 11 army officers
M Moneruzzaman 22 January, 2026, 00:27

Sheikh Hasina.

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Wednesday began the trial over enforced disappearances against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, former defence adviser retired major general Tarique Ahmed Siddique, three former directors general of the Rapid Action Battalion, and 11 RAB directors deputed from the army.

The three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, opened the trial by recording the testimony of Supreme Court lawyer and enforced disappearance victim Mir Ahmad Bin Quasem Arman.

The trial of the 17 accused in this enforced disappearance case began two days after the same tribunal on Monday opened the trial of another enforced disappearance case against 13 people, including Hasina, Tarique, and 11 other serving and retired army officials deputed to the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence.

Arman, who testified as the first prosecution witness in the case on Wednesday, is the son of executed war crimes convict Mir Quasem Ali and is one of the 11 victims who returned from a secret detention centre run by RAB-1 Taskforce cell at its headquarters in Dhaka after their enforced disappearance.

Arman told the tribunal that he was confined for eight years at a secret detention centre run by RAB-1’s Taskforce cell during the ousted Awami League regime.

His testimony began after chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam had placed his opening statement before the tribunal.

Tajul said that enforced disappearances of political dissenters were used as a tool by the Awami League to remain in power for long.

The tribunal set January 26 to complete Arman’s testimony and cross-examination.

The same date was also fixed for hearing review petitions filed by detained army officers challenging the tribunal’s December 23 order that rejected their discharge petitions.

The 10 accused army officers, who were then deputed in the RAB-1, are now detained and were present in the dock.

Seven other accused, including Hasina, Asaduzzaman, Tarique, a retired army officer and three former senior police officers, are still in hiding and facing the trial in absentia.

The detained army officers are Colonel KM Azad, Colonel Abdullah Al Momen, Brigadier General Md Mahbub Alam, Lieutenant Colonel Anwar Latif Khan, Brigadier General Md Jahangir Alam, Lieutenant Colonel Sarwar Bin Kashem, Lieutenant Colonel Saiful Islam Suman, Brigadier General Tofayel Mostafa Sarwar, Brigadier General Kamrul Hassan and Lieutenant Colonel Moshiur Rahman Jewel.

Besides Hasina, Kamal and Tarique, the other absconding accused are retired lieutenant colonel Muhammad Khairul Islam, a former RAB intelligence chief now believed to be living in the United Kingdom, and three former police officers - Benazir Ahmed, a former inspector general of police, Khurshid Hossain and barrister Harun-or-Rashid, all former RAB director generals during the Awami League regime.

Arman, in his testimony, said that he was picked up from his rented home in the capital’s DOHS area on the night of August 9, 2016, by seven or eight armed men who identified themselves as members of RAB-1.

He said that the men were wearing bulletproof vests marked ‘RAB-1’.

At the time, the Appellate Division was hearing his father’s review petition against the death sentence for war crimes.

Arman testified that when senior officials visited him, he was handcuffed behind his back and made to stand facing a wall so that he could not recognise the officers.

He said that he heard some visitors speaking in Hindi and talking on mobile phones, and noticed the smell of perfume.

He said he spent eight Ramadans during his confinement for eight years. He added that he wanted a copy of the Quran but was denied.

According to him, a guard once said that they could not provide it because a foreign intelligence officer of RAW had been staying there.

Arman testified that he was taken to a secret detention centre after his abduction and kept in a small cell on the first floor for 16 days while blindfolded and handcuffed. Later, he was shifted to another cell.

He said that only one of his hands was free for eating and using the toilet.

He said that he later identified the building after visiting the site with the chief adviser, members of the enforced disappearance commission, the ICT chief prosecutor, and investigators following the change of government on August 5, 2024.

Arman told the tribunal that he fell sick several times and underwent surgery for thigh swelling inside the detention facility.

He said he saw a wooden box marked ‘TFI’ and was once given an ointment tube labelled ‘Property of RAB HQ’.

During winter, he said that he was given a blanket marked ‘RAB’ or ‘INT’. From his cell, he said, he could hear aircraft landing, training activities, and the movement of vehicles.

Arman said that he was always blindfolded with military-style fabric. One night, the blindfold was changed to a gamcha, and his hands were tied with cloth.

He said that he was later put into a microbus, forced to lie on the floor, and someone sat on his body during the drive. After about 30 minutes, he was released.

Arman said that he walked after being dropped off, heard the call to prayer, offered prayers, and then realised that he was in the Diabari area of Uttara.

On Monday, the same tribunal started enforced disappearance trial of Hasina, Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and 11 other serving and retired army officials, who were deputed in the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence during the Awami League regime, for their alleged involvement in committing crimes against humanity, including abduction, detention and torture of 26 people with dissenting views against the Awami League at the DGFI’s secret detention Cells.​

 

[Saif]

ICT-1 orders start of trial against Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Junaid Ahmed Palak

International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Wednesday framed charges against Sajeeb Wazed Joy, son of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former ICT affairs adviser, and former state minister for the ICT division Zunaid Ahmed Palak for...

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ICT-1 orders start of trial against Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Junaid Ahmed Palak
Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha . Dhaka 21 January, 2026, 16:47

Zunaid Ahmed Palak and Sajeeb Wazed Joy. | UNB file photo

International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Wednesday framed charges against Sajeeb Wazed Joy, son of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former ICT affairs adviser, and former state minister for the ICT division Zunaid Ahmed Palak for allegedly facilitating crimes against humanity by imposing a nationwide internet shutdown.

The three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, framed three charges of crimes against humanity against the duo and fixed February 18 for submission of the prosecution’s opening statement and commencement of witness depositions.

On January 15, the tribunal had set on Wednesday for passing its order after both the prosecution and defence concluded their hearings.

Chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam appeared for the prosecution, while Litonne Ahmed represented accused Zunaid Ahmed Palak and Manjur Alam defended fugitive accused Sajeeb Wazed Joy.

On December 4, the tribunal issued an arrest warrant against Joy after taking cognisance of the formal charges brought against him and Palak.

According to the formal charge, the accused are alleged to have shut down internet services across the country during the July uprising, thereby facilitating the commission of crimes against humanity.

The prosecution said Palak, while serving as state minister for the ICT division, posted a status on his verified Facebook account after receiving approval from Joy, which allegedly instigated widespread attacks on agitating students and the public by police and Chhatra League cadres.

Tajul Islam told the tribunal that, following Joy’s instructions, Palak first reduced mobile internet speed and later imposed a complete shutdown to create an environment conducive to the detention, torture and killing of protesters.

He further said Palak provided misleading statements regarding the internet disruption and later blocked social media platforms including WhatsApp, Facebook and TikTok to prevent information about the alleged atrocities from reaching the outside world.

‘The conspiracy to block the internet originated from Sajeeb Wazed Joy. He made the decision after consulting his mother, Sheikh Hasina, and Palak implemented it,’ the prosecution added.

The tribunal’s investigation agency submitted its probe report against the accused on December 3, 2025.​

 

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ICT sentences ex-DMP boss Habib, 2 others to death over Chankharpul killings

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday sentenced three senior officers of Dhaka Metropolitan Police to death and five of their subordinate officers to varying prison terms for their roles in the killings in the capital’s Chankharpool area during the...

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ICT sentences ex-DMP boss Habib, 2 others to death over Chankharpul killings

Ex-AC Imrul, four other cops jailed for 3 to 6 years

M Moneruzzaman 26 January, 2026, 12:41

Habibur Rahman

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday sentenced three senior officers of Dhaka Metropolitan Police to death and five of their subordinate officers to varying prison terms for their roles in the killings in the capital’s Chankharpool area during the 2024 student-led mass uprising.

The death sentence recipients are Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s former commissioner Habibur Rahman, former joint commissioner Sudip Kumar Chakraborty, and former Ramna assistant deputy commissioner Shah Alam Md Akhterul Islam.

The tribunal found them guilty of crimes against humanity for their superior command responsibility in the Chankharpool operation, which left six protesters dead and several others injured.

The tribunal also ordered the confiscation of their properties to the state exchequer. All three convicts remain absconding.

Five other police officers were sentenced to three to six years’ imprisonment for their complicity in the killings.

They are former Ramna assistant commissioner Mohammad Imrul, Shahbagh police station inspector (operations) Arshad Hossain, and suspended constables Sujan Hossain, Imaz Hossain Imon, and Nasirul Islam.

AC Imrul was sentenced to six years, Arshad to four years and constables Sujan, Imaz and Nasir to three years.

Of the five, all but Imrul were present in the dock, as they are currently in custody.

A three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, delivered the verdict. The other members are Justice Md Shofiul Alam Mahmood and retired district and sessions judge Mohammad Mohitul Haque Anam Chowdhury.

The detained convicts remained calm in the dock during the pronouncement of the verdict.

Their female family members, on hearing the verdict, however, broke down in tears inside the courtroom.

After the announcement of the verdict, chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam told the tribunal that the prosecution would appeal against lighter sentences against five ex-police officers.

Parents of several victims also expressed dissatisfaction with the lighter sentences given to the subordinate officers.

According to the prosecution, the convicted constables opened fire on protesters on August 5, 2024, killing six people.

According to the charges, the former metropolitan police chief and his officers allegedly ordered, abetted, and facilitated the killings while the constables carried out the shootings that left six people dead during a protest on August 5, 2024.

The six victims killed at Chankharpool are Shahriar Khan Anas, a class-10 student who left behind a poignant letter to his mother, Sheikh Mahadi Hasan Zunayed, also known as Mostakin, Mohammad Yakib, Md Rakib Hawlader, Mohammad Ismail Haque, and Manik Mia, who is also known as Saharik Chowdhury.

Anas, the very young student, left his Gandaria home that morning after writing, ‘I cannot stay at home while people from all walks of life have joined the July uprising,’ according to the tribunal investigator.

The tribunal held DMP commissioner Habibur and his colleagues, Sudip and Akhterul, responsible for the killings due to their superior command responsibility.

It observed that the subordinate officers were found liable to the extent of their complicity, but not as principal offenders.

The tribunal noted that it was not possible to determine which specific bullets killed which victims, but said this was not necessary to establish crimes against humanity.

The tribunal observed that after the fall of the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024, Habibur, Sudip, Akhterul and Imrul fled, reinforcing their involvement in the crimes.

It found that Habibur ordered his subordinate officers to use maximum force with lethal weapons against the protesters.

Habibur conveyed the order through a wireless message. He, along with Sudip and Akhterul, later briefed police officers at Shahbagh police station.

The tribunal found that ADC Akhterul also separately briefed police members deployed at Chankharpool.

As protesters were marching towards Central Shaheed Minar to join the March to Dhaka programme, constables Sujan Hossain, Imaz Hossain Imon and Nasirul Islam opened fire with lethal weapons, killing six protesters and injuring many others.

AC Imrul was present at the scene, and the forces involved were operating under his command, the tribunal found.

The tribunal found that ADC Akhterul compelled subordinate officers to fire, acting on the instructions of the DMP commissioner. Some officers refused to shoot, despite pressure.

It observed that 40 to 50 police and law enforcement personnel were deployed in the Chankharpool area.

It said that mere presence at the site was not a crime, as maintaining law and order was their duty.

The tribunal noted that constable Sujan, who had joined the police only months earlier, was not in a position to refuse orders from his superiors.

Sujan was seen rejoicing and cheering when his bullets hit protesters, the tribunal observed.

It found that ADC Akhterul forcibly handed a China rifle and bullets to Sujan, taking the weapon from constable Ajoy Ghose.

When some officers refused to fire, Akhterul threatened and verbally abused them, it said.

Records showed that Nasirul Islam officially returned his rifle and bullets. However, video footage showed him opening fire, leading the tribunal to conclude that he may have been forced to use another weapon during the operation.

At least 40 police members were issued 18 China rifles, 15 shotguns and two SMGs, along with a large quantity of ammunition.

Official records showed that only four to five officers returned their weapons and bullets, while the use of ammunition far exceeded what was accounted for.

The tribunal observed that the scale of firing was extensive, indicating widespread use of lethal force.

Referring to Article 7(2) of the Rome Statute, the tribunal said crimes against humanity require an attack against civilians that is widespread and systematic.

The tribunal found that during the July–August protests, law enforcers and Awami League activists were deployed nationwide to suppress protests using lethal force. It cited the use of drones and helicopters, internet shutdowns, obstruction of ambulances, denial of medical treatment, disruption of burials and threats to doctors.

It noted that a United Nations report also classified the July–August violence as crimes against humanity, specifically citing the Chankharpool killings as an example of a widespread and systematic attack on civilians.

This is the tribunal’s second verdict among at least 15 crimes against humanity cases linked to the July–August atrocities now pending before the two International Crimes Tribunals reconstituted in October 2025 under the interim government of Professor Muhammad Yunus.

In its first verdict on November 17, 2025, the tribunal sentenced deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and Asaduzzaman Khan to death in absentia. Former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun, who turned state witness, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. They were found guilty of committing crimes against humanity for their superior command responsibility in committing widespread and systematic atrocities against July protesters across the country during the 2024 mass uprising.​

 

[Saif]

ICT orders arrest of Hasina, Kamal, 4 ex-DMP officials

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Thursday issued arrest warrants against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and four former senior officials of Dhaka Metropolitan Police in a crimes against humanity case...

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ICT orders arrest of Hasina, Kamal, 4 ex-DMP officials
Staff Correspondent 29 January, 2026, 18:05

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Thursday issued arrest warrants against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and four former senior officials of Dhaka Metropolitan Police in a crimes against humanity case over enforced disappearances, abductions, and torture.

The case relates to the alleged detention and abuse of 10 people at secret cells of the DMP’s Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime unit in July 2016.

The four other accused police officers are DMP’s former additional commissioner Sheikh Muhammad Maruf Hasan, former joint commissioner (crime) Abdul Baten, former joint commissioner (Detective Branch) Krishna Pada Roy, and former CTTC chief Monirul Islam.

Former inspector general of police AKM Shahidul Haque and former DMP commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia, who were arrested earlier, were produced before the three-member tribunal.

The tribunal issued warrants against the six absconding accused and directed the inspector general of police to submit an execution report by February 8.

According to the prosecution, on July 26, 2016, senior DMP police officials, along with their forces, carried out a so-called block raid at a house in Kalyanpur.

The prosecution alleged that several madrasa students and religious-minded youths were abducted and confined on the fourth floor of a building popularly known as the ‘five-storey Jhaj Building at Kalyanpur in the capital.’

The victims are Motaleb Abdullah Raihan Kabir alias Tareq, Matiur Rahman, Md Zubayer Hossain, Sejat Rouf alias Ark, Taj-ul Haque alias Rashik, Abu Hakim alias Naim, Ashiquzzaman Khan, and one unidentified man.

Investigators claimed that the victims were later portrayed as extremists and that police opened indiscriminate fire during a staged operation, killing several of them.

Rafiqul Hasan Regan, who survived with bullet injuries, was allegedly forced to file a false case describing the incident as a militant crackdown.

ICT prosecutor Gazi Monwar Hossain Tamim read out the formal charges after the investigation agency submitted the charge sheet to the ICT registrar.

He told journalists that the investigation found the youths had been arrested from different parts of the country, well before the incident.

Some were allegedly held in Detective Branch custody for two to three months before being brought to the Kalyanpur house on the night of the incident.

After the killings, the incident was publicly described as a successful anti-militant operation, the prosecution alleged.​

 

[Saif]

Sheikh Hasina faces 663 lawsuits, including 453 on murder charges: TIB

A total of 663 lawsuits have been filed nationwide against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina in connection with incidents during the July mass uprising. Of the legal cases, 453 have been filed on murder charges. This was found from a research report published by Transparency International...

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Sheikh Hasina faces 663 lawsuits, including 453 on murder charges: TIB
Staff Correspondent Dhaka
Published: 02 Feb 2026, 21: 54

Sheikh Hasina File photo

A total of 663 lawsuits have been filed nationwide against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina in connection with incidents during the July mass uprising. Of the legal cases, 453 have been filed on murder charges.

This was found from a research report published by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB). The report, titled “One and a Half Years after the Fall of Authoritarianism: Expectations and Outcomes”, was unveiled at an event held at TIB’s office in Dhanmondi, Dhaka on Monday.

It outlines the progress, challenges and limitations of legal proceedings linked to the July uprising.

According to the report, up to 19 November 2025, a total of 1,785 cases were filed across the country against perpetrators, instigators and those who allegedly ordered killings of students and civilians during the uprising. Sheikh Hasina has been named as an accused in 663 of those cases.

Of the total, 837 are murder cases, with Hasina listed as an accused in 453 of them, the report added.

Sheikh Hasina has already been sentenced to death in one case relating to crimes against humanity committed during the July uprising. She is currently in India, and an arrest warrant has been issued against her by the International Crimes Tribunal.

TIB reported that charge sheets have so far been submitted in 106 cases, including 31 murder cases. A total of 128 individuals, including former ministers and members of parliament from the Awami League government, have been arrested in these cases.

Comparing the number of cases filed with the number of charge sheets submitted, TIB said the figures clearly indicate the slow pace of investigations.

The report also highlighted the large number of cases filed against the police in connection with the July events. A total of 761 cases have been lodged against the police, naming 1,168 police officers as accused. Of them, only 61 have been arrested.

Presenting data on proceedings before the International Crimes Tribunal, the report stated that 450 complaints have so far been submitted, resulting in 45 formal cases. These cases name 209 accused, including Sheikh Hasina, while 84 individuals have been arrested. At present, 12 cases are under trial, involving 105 accused.

TIB further noted allegations that many accused individuals have secretly left the country, with claims that members of the military, law enforcement agencies and some local political leaders have provided direct or indirect assistance in facilitating their departure.

The organisation expressed concern over indiscriminate case-filing and mass naming of accused persons following the uprising.

According to TIB’s estimates, nearly 150,000 people nationwide have been named as accused, of whom 21,854 have been arrested.

The report also stated that 4,017 cases have been filed against leaders and activists of the Bangladesh Awami League, whose activities have been banned, for alleged involvement in various criminal offences during the July uprising. These cases name 224,813 accused, with 75,400 arrests made so far; however, 55 per cent have been released on bail.

TIB also documented allegations of filing lawsuits and arrests in exchange for money, retaliatory lawsuits, political harassment, and extortion through threats of inclusion or exclusion from cases. In many instances, the report said, law enforcement agencies accepted cases under pressure without conducting preliminary investigations.

Concerns were also raised regarding the competence, experience and political affiliations of judges and prosecutors appointed to the International Crimes Tribunal.

While acknowledging that the judicial process has begun and that some progress has been made, TIB warned that weak case foundations, procedural complications in investigation reports, and the absence of a clear reconstruction of events pose serious challenges to the delivery of justice.

Although welcoming the initiative to broadcast verdict announcements live, the organisation cautioned that failure to adhere strictly to due legal process could invite criticism of both trials and verdicts. Weaknesses in proceedings, it warned, could allow actual perpetrators to evade accountability.

The report further stated that effective accountability mechanisms outside departmental procedures for police misconduct remain absent, reflecting shortcomings in both government intent and capacity.

It also noted the continued prevalence of long-standing practices, including unjustified case filings, detention without trial, prolonged incarceration despite bail eligibility, misuse of state influence, and naming journalists and professionals as accused in murder cases.

TIB executive director Iftekharuzzaman was present at the event, alongside senior research fellow Shahzada M Akram, Md Zulkarnaine, research fellow Farhana Rahman, research associate Mostafa Kamal, Mohaiemenul Islam, among others.​

 

[Saif]

RAB formation ‘wrong and dangerous’, ex-army chief tells ICT

Former army chief Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan on Sunday testified before the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in an enforced disappearance case, calling the 2003 decision to form the Rapid Action Battalion by mixing army personnel with civil police a wrong and...

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RAB formation ‘wrong and dangerous’, ex-army chief tells ICT

He links it to ‘culture of killings’

Staff Correspondent 08 February, 2026, 22:05

Former army chief Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan on Sunday testified before the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in an enforced disappearance case, calling the 2003 decision to form the Rapid Action Battalion by mixing army personnel with civil police a wrong and dangerous move.

Iqbal, a retired general, served as the army chief between June 15, 2012 and June 24, 2015.

He said that the decision to form the RAB should never have been taken, as army personnel are trained to use lethal force against enemies, not for civilian law enforcement.

‘The training of army members was not suitable for RAB duties,’ he said, adding that extra-judicial killings began between 2003 and 2006.

He said that many people were killed during Operation Clean Heart before the RAB was formed. According to army sources, 12 people died of heart attacks during the operation, while Human Rights Watch reported 60 killings.

‘Later, the killings during Operation Clean Heart were indemnified, which gave a licence to kill,’ he said.

He added that a culture of killings existed in the army earlier, and enforced disappearances developed later.

‘It is wrong to assume killings started in 2008. The culture of killings in the army began after independence,’ he said.

Iqbal testified that the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence became the main controller of the country during the 2007–2009 state of emergency.

He said that the emergency was declared amid conflict over extending the chief justice’s retirement age before the 2007 general election.

He said that intelligence agencies picked up many individuals, including ministers and political figures, and detained them in secret cells.

‘They also picked up BNP leader Tarique Rahman and tortured him,’ he said, adding that detaining civilians in intelligence cells became a culture during that period.

‘They believed that they could do anything after picking someone up, and would escape accountability,’ he said.

He said that the state of emergency changed the culture within the army, with some officers entering politics and creating internal divisions between senior and junior officers.

He said that anti-India and anti–Awami League sentiment intensified among army officers after the BDR mutiny in 2009, which killed 57 army officers and 17 civilians.

Iqbal said that a relative of the deposed prime minister, Lieutenant General (retired) Tarique Ahmed Siddique, became a powerful figure controlling the army after being appointed defence and security adviser.

‘He established himself as a ‘super chief’ and controlled the DGFI, NSI, RAB, NTMC, Ansar and BGB,’ he said.

He alleged that Siddique created four power quarters.

The first was a criminal quarter operated by the DGFI, NSI, RAB and NTMC to repress political opponents, during which killings and enforced disappearances continued.

The second was a ‘deep state’ quarter involving the prime minister’s military secretary, DGFI and NSI, he said and added that major decisions on armed forces chiefs were taken there, often contrary to the chiefs’ views.

The third was a defence procurement quarter involving PSO, AFD, DGDP and the service chiefs. He alleged that Siddique controlled defence purchases through this structure.

The fourth was an engineering quarter involving senior officers of the Military Engineering Corps, which he alleged was a major source of illegal money.

Iqbal said that after becoming army chief, he ordered an end to killings in ‘crossfire’ incidents.

He said that incidents of ‘crossfire’ reduced briefly but increased again after Benazir Ahmed became the RAB director general and the then colonel Ziaul Ahsan became an additional director general.

He said that he tried to control Ziaul Ahsan but failed, and Ziaul was initially barred from the cantonment but later reinstated on Siddique’s intervention.

‘It is painful that we deputed army officers to RAB as professionals, but they returned as killers,’ he said.

The tribunal bench led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder will continue recording his testimony today in the enforced disappearance case against Ziaul Ahsan, who was produced before the tribunal from jail.

Iqbal also said that the army had detained and interrogated criminal suspects during law and order operations, and some died during interrogation, though he said the number was limited.

He said that inquiries were conducted and actions were legalised when special allegations could be noticed.​