Dhaka, Dec 18, (dpa/GNA) – A special court in Bangladesh has opened judicial proceedings against 12 former army officers, including five who served as chiefs of the country’s main intelligence agency.
They are accused of involvement in enforced disappearances and custodial torture of individuals, during the previous administration of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
The International Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka, which deals with crimes against humanity, ruled on Thursday that the trial of 13 defendants, including Hasina, could proceed.
Chief Prosecutor Tajul Islam said the prosecution’s opening statement and the recording of testimony would begin on January 19.
The defendants face charges of “crimes against humanity” for alleged torture and enforced disappearances that took place in Joint Interrogation Cells (JIC), he said.
These facilities were operated by the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), the primary spy agency of the armed forces, during Hasina’s tenure.
The prosecution alleges the agency was used to silence dissent and political opponents.
Bangladesh’s current interim administration, led by Muhammad Yunus, initiated the trial after taking office in August 2024 following the ousting of Hasina amid a violent mass uprising.
Hasina, who has been in exile in India since fleeing the country in August 2024, was previously convicted in absentia and sentenced to death for crimes committed during the brutal suppression of last year’s uprising.
A UN estimate places the death toll from that unrest at 1,400 people.
GNA