Bangladesh's Sheikh Hasina Vows to Return Home Despite Death Penalty Threat

Sheikh Hasina, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, has made it clear that she will return to Dhaka next December at any cost, even if she faces the death penalty or arrest upon her return from India. In an email interview to news agency AP, Sheikh Hasina said that if her fate is written in death, she would prefer to die on her country's soil and among her people rather than in another country. She made it clear that her decision would not change. Sheikh Hasina has a long political history in Bangladesh. She has been the country's prime minister for four consecutive terms, from 1996 to 2001 and again from 2009 to 2024. However, in August 2024, she had to leave her post and seek refuge in India after a violent and widespread mass movement led by students. Subsequently, in 2025, a special tribunal in Bangladesh sentenced her to death while she was on trial for crimes against humanity. According to the United Nations, nearly 1,400 people were injured during the protests. Security forces were charged with violent actions during the protests.