UK barrister files ICC complaint over alleged crimes against Bangladesh’s Awami League

Ansar Ahmed Ullah
Contributing Editor,Shottobani

London:  A British barrister has lodged a formal complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC), urging prosecutors to investigate alleged crimes against humanity committed against members and supporters of Bangladesh’s Awami League following last year’s political unrest.

Steven Powles KC of Doughty Street Chambers in London has filed an Article 15 communication on behalf of the Awami League, calling for an inquiry into what he describes as “retaliatory violence” carried out after protests erupted in July 2024 against Sheikh Hasina’s former government.

The filing claims there is a “reasonable basis to believe” that crimes, including murder, imprisonment and persecution have been committed, and that Bangladesh’s justice system is unwilling or unable to prosecute those responsible.

According to the submission, more than 400 Awami League figures have been killed since July 2024, many beaten or lynched by mobs. It also alleges that 25 party members have died in custody, some showing signs of torture. Thousands more have reportedly been arrested without charge under Operation Devil Hunt, a security sweep launched by the unelected caretaker government in February 2025.

The communication points to a government Immunity Order issued in October 2024, shielding participants in the uprising from prosecution, a move the filing says signals state complicity and entrenched impunity. Bangladesh, which ratified the ICC’s Rome Statute in 2010, falls within the Court’s jurisdiction. The communication argues that an ICC investigation offers the only realistic path to accountability and justice for victims of the violence.