UCA News
Contribute

Islamist leader gets life for war crimes

Party accuses tribunal of "show trials"
Islamist leader gets life for war crimes
An activist and veterans from the 1971 war of independence outside the tribunal (File photo: AFP)
Published: February 05, 2013 07:57 AM GMT
Updated: February 05, 2013 09:18 PM GMT

A Bangladeshi court sentenced a senior Islamist opposition official to life in prison Tuesday for mass murder and crimes against humanity during the 1971 liberation war against Pakistan.

Abdul Quader Molla, 64, the fourth highest ranked leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami Party, is the first politician to be found guilty by the International Crimes Tribunal, a much-criticised domestic court based in Dhaka.

Molla cried "Allahu Akbar" (God is greater) and said all the charges were false after the presiding judge Obaidul Hassan delivered the verdict in a crowded court, blanketed with heavy security.

The judgment sparked protests by Jamaat, the country's largest Islamic party which enforced a nationwide strike Tuesday in anticipation of the conviction. It warned it would resist "at any cost a government blueprint" to execute its leaders.

"He deserved the death sentence because of the gravity of the crimes. But the judge gave him life imprisonment," Attorney-General Mahbubey Alam said, adding Molla "had directly participated" in the killing of more than 350 people near Dhaka.

The verdict is the second to have been handed down by the tribunal. On January 21 a top TV preacher, an ex-Jamaat official, was sentenced to death in absentia for murder and genocide.

The judge in Molla's case refused a prosecution bid to try him for genocide.

Molla's lawyer Nazim Momen said they would appeal the verdict as it was "politically motivated."

Ten other opposition figures -- including the entire leadership of Jamaat and two from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) -- stand accused of war crimes.

Both Jamaat and BNP have labelled the cases "show trials" aimed at barring the leaders from upcoming polls. International rights groups have questioned the proceedings. AFP

Related reports

Forty years later, Bangladesh leader jailed for war crimes

Islamist party leader arrested for war crimes

Help UCA News to be independent
Dear reader,
Lent is the season during which catechumens make their final preparations to be welcomed into the Church.
Each year during Lent, UCA News presents the stories of people who will join the Church in proclaiming that Jesus Christ is their Lord. The stories of how women and men who will be baptized came to believe in Christ are inspirations for all of us as we prepare to celebrate the Church's chief feast.
Help us with your donations to bring such stories of faith that make a difference in the Church and society.
A small contribution of US$5 will support us continue our mission…
William J. Grimm
Publisher
UCA News
Asian Bishops
Latest News
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia