Leaked Audio Reveals Sheikh Hasina Ordered Deadly Crackdown on Bangladesh Protests, BBC Investigation Finds

Reading Time: 3 minutes A leaked audio recording has emerged as compelling evidence that former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina authorised the use of lethal force against student-led protests during a brutal crackdown last year, according to an exclusive investigation by BBC Eye. Sheikh Hasina, who served as Prime Minister for over a decade before being ousted amid rising political unrest, faced widespread demonstrations throughout July 2024. The protests, initially peaceful and led by students demanding reform, rapidly escalated following heavy-handed police responses. Against this backdrop, the leaked phone call—made on 18 July 2024 from Hasina’s official residence, Gono Bhaban—captures her instructing security forces to “use lethal weapons” against demonstrators, declaring: “Wherever they find [them], they will shoot.” The United Nations estimates that up to 1,400 people lost their lives during the uprising. Hasina, who has since fled to India, vehemently denies any wrongdoing, while her party, the Awami League,