A court in Bangladesh issues an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

A local court in Bangladesh has issued an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been living in exile in India since her ouster during a student uprising in August.

The arrest warrant was issued on Thursday by the International Criminal Court (ICT) in its first session since it was reshuffled by Bangladesh’s new interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

“The court has … ordered former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to be arrested and brought before the court on November 18,” said Mohammad Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in Bangladesh.

The court has filed more than 60 complaints against Hasina, her Awami League party, various party leaders and former senior law enforcement officials, citing serious allegations that include enforced disappearances, killings and genocide.

The ICT’s chief prosecutor had earlier said that Hasina is accused of ruling the nation with an iron fist and overseeing the “massacres” that took place.

“Since she has been made the main accused in the Bangladesh massacres, we will try to legally bring her back to Bangladesh to stand trial,” Islam said in September.

Yunus is seeking to bring Hasina back into the country so she can be prosecuted over a series of alleged violent repression of student demonstrations that escalated into mass anti-government protests before her self-imposed exile in neighboring India.

Hasina fled in a military helicopter on August 5 after weeks of deadly clashes that reportedly killed more than 600 people in July and August this year.

She blamed the United States for her downfall, saying Washington tried to remove her from power after she refused to cede control of the island of St. Martin, which would have allowed the U.S. to “take control of the Bay of Bengal”.

Her stay in India since then has worsened relations between New Delhi and Dhaka, prompting her return to court.

Dhaka has canceled her diplomatic passport. A bilateral extradition agreement between the two countries allows her to return to stand trial on criminal charges.