Dhaka, Jan 6: A state-appointed commission in Bangladesh has concluded that hundreds of people who vanished during the tenure of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina are presumed dead, marking one of the gravest human rights findings in the country’s recent history.
According to the commission’s final report submitted to the government this week, investigators examined more than 1,500 cases of alleged enforced disappearances and estimate that at least 287 victims were killed. Many of the bodies, the panel said, were likely disposed of in rivers around Dhaka or buried in concealed burial sites.
The inquiry was launched after Hasina was removed from office following a mass uprising in August 2024. Investigators reported the discovery of multiple unmarked graves across different parts of the country, reinforcing allegations of systematic extrajudicial actions.
The commission noted that a significant number of those who disappeared were associated with opposition groups, including Jamaat-e-Islami and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. It further stated that security agencies involved in the operations acted under directives from senior political leadership at the time.
In a parallel investigation, police last month began exhuming a mass grave in the capital, where several bodies linked to the 2024 uprising were recovered. Forensic assessments found bullet injuries on the remains, pointing to the use of lethal force.
International concern has also intensified. The United Nations has previously estimated that up to 1,400 people may have died during the crackdown as the former government attempted to suppress the protests.
Sheikh Hasina, who is currently outside the country, was sentenced to death in absentia in November after a court convicted her of crimes against humanity related to the violence.
The commission has urged the government to seek assistance from international forensic specialists and to preserve DNA samples from families in order to identify victims. Relatives of those killed have welcomed the findings but are pressing authorities to fast-track prosecutions against police and security officials implicated in the killings.
