Hasina's orders to use lethal weapons, helicopter firing during July Uprising proven at ICT: Chief prosecutor
“Prosecution has been able to prove before the tribunal that the killings were carried out on her orders and that the actions were part of a “widespread” and “systematic” campaign amounting to crimes against humanity,” he says
International Crimes Tribunal Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam said that the prosecution has proven in the court that the shooting of the protesters from helicopters and killing them using lethal weapons during last year's July uprising were carried out on the orders of Sheikh Hasina, the then-prime minister.
"She (Sheikh Hasina) ordered that positions of protesters be identified by drone and that killings be carried out by firing from helicopters. She confirmed to Hasnul Haq Inu that paratroopers would be deployed in Narayanganj from helicopters and that 'bombing' would be done from above," Tajul told the court.
Today (15 October), at ICT-1, Tajul delivered the fourth day of the prosecution's arguments. The prosecution will continue with more arguments today.
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After presenting the arguments in the case accusing Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun of crimes against humanity, the chief prosecutor spoke to reporters.
Earlier, audio recordings of conversations between Sheikh Hasina and Hasanul Haq Inu, Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh and S M Maksud Kamal had been played in the court.
Tajul said, "Through those conversations, we have shown that there were direct orders from her to carry out killings — that is, to launch 'widespread' and 'systematic' attacks across the country."
Tajul stressed that the chain of command and the step-by-step issuing of orders from the top down have been established and proved beyond doubt. He said this also establishes that the crimes were "widespread" and "systematic" — the requisite conditions for crimes against humanity under both international and domestic law.
On the question of whether the voice in the audio presented at the tribunal is genuinely Sheikh Hasina's or was synthetically generated by artificial intelligence (AI), the prosecution said it had addressed that.
"We have clearly shown that Bangladesh CID forensic tests determined the voice is Sheikh Hasina's; and they have also verified the voices of Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, Hasanul Haq Inu and Maksud Kamal," the chief prosecutor said.
Tajul said two foreign organisations — BBC and Al Jazeera — engaged separate firms to examine whether the voice was AI-generated; they too confirmed the voice is Sheikh Hasina's and not AI-produced.
He claimed the prosecution's evidence is so conclusive that it would stand up not only before this court but also before any international tribunal or any court anywhere in the world.
On the orders to kill, the chief prosecutor said the directive genuinely came from Sheikh Hasina and was testified to in court by the then heads of police forces, who said they received orders to use lethal weapons and to deploy helicopters. The prime minister told the home minister, who then telephoned and relayed the orders to his subordinates. Those subordinates — including then DMP commissioner Habibur and Proloy Jowardar — transmitted the orders through command sectors and wireless messages to various command posts and deployed units.
"As a result, evidence of nationwide use of killing weapons and firearms that followed from these commands has been shown through our live witnesses. We have presented documentary evidence, newspaper reports and video footage showing how lethal weapons and helicopters were used," Tajul said.
On firing from helicopters, he said the prosecution obtained detailed flight manifests from the relevant forces. The prosecution presented flight durations and the names and contact numbers of the pilots who operated those flights. They also showed which soldiers or officers, besides pilots, were aboard those flights.
Tajul added that the prosecution produced lists of the types of weapons used and the number of rounds fired. "We have records showing the use of SMGs, light machine guns, shotguns, rifles, sound grenades and stun grenades," he said.
Video footage, footage of wounded victims with gunshot injuries, and bullets recovered from the bodies of the dead and injured have also been submitted in court, he added.
