Final witness to testify in Hasina’s crimes against humanity trial
NN ONLINE:
The final witness in the high-profile case against ousted fascist Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and three others for crimes against humanity will testify on Sunday before International Crimes Tribunal-1.
Prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim confirmed on Saturday night that the investigating officer will appear as the 54th and last witness in the trial. The tribunal is headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Majumder and includes two other judges.
Portions of the investigating officer’s statement, along with seized video footage, will be broadcast live at 11:30 am on Sunday. The case centers on atrocities allegedly committed during the 2024 July Uprising last year. Families of victims, including the father of Abu Sayeed, one of the uprising’s most recognized martyrs, have already testified.
Key witnesses have included Nahid Islam, convener of the National Citizens’ Party and leader of the July Uprising, and Dr. Mahmudur Rahman, editor of the daily Amar Desh. Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam, along with Prosecutors Mizanul Islam and Gazi MH Tamim, is leading the prosecution team. Other members of the prosecution panel are also present during hearings.
Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal are being represented by state-appointed lawyer Amir Hossain, as both are currently fugitives. Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who was arrested and later turned state witness, is being represented by lawyer Zayed Bin Amjad.
The tribunal formally charged Hasina, Kamal, and Mamun on July 10 and began the trial shortly thereafter. At one point, the tribunal accepted Mamun’s application to become a witness in order to help uncover the full truth. He has since testified in court.
In addition to this case, Sheikh Hasina faces two more charges before the International Crimes Tribunal. One accuses her of disappearances and killings during the Awami League’s 15-and-a-half-year tenure in power. The other relates to the deadly crackdown on a Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Dhaka’s Motijheel area.
The tribunal is investigating allegations that the fallen Awami League government, its affiliated activists, and elements within the police and civil administration committed widespread atrocities — allegedly including genocide — while suppressing last year’s mass uprising. Two separate international tribunals are currently trying these alleged crimes.