Bangladesh urges Interpol to issue 'red notices' for fugitive Awami League leaders

The interim government of Bangladesh on Sunday requested Interpol to issue a “red notice” alert for ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s loyalists who are now fugitives.

Hasina took a chopper to New Delhi in August after widespread student protests in the Southeast Asian country forced her removal from the top leadership. Following their leader’s ouster, Awami League leaders too fled the country.

“Those responsible for the indiscriminate killings during the mass uprising in July and August will be brought back from wherever they have taken refuge”, Asif Nazrul, the interim government’s law advisor, told reporters on Sunday.

“We will ensure they are arrested and brought to justice”.

While some leaders managed to escape prosecution by the Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, others were arrested after Hasina’s regime collapsed.

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What does an Interpol ‘red notice’ mean?

France-based Interpol publishes red notices at the request of a member nation, based on an arrest warrant issued in their home country.

Red notices issued by the global police body alert law enforcement agencies worldwide about fugitives.

Nazrul said they would request a red notice “as soon as possible”.

India is a member of Interpol, but the red notice does not mean New Delhi must hand Hasina over.

Member countries can “apply their own laws in deciding whether to arrest a person”, according to the group, which organises police cooperation between 196 member countries.

Arrest warrant issued against Hasina

A Bangladeshi court last month issued an arrest warrant for former Hasina over the mass killings of student protestors in July and August.

Mohammad Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal said, “The court has… ordered the arrest of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and to produce her in court on November 18.”

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The prosecution has also requested arrest warrants against 50 other individuals allegedly involved in the mass killings during the student protests against the Hasina-led Awami League government.

With inputs from agencies