ICT-1 to deliver verdict in crimes against humanity case today

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1) is set to deliver judgment Sunday (June 28) in a crimes against humanity case arising from the killing of three civilians — including a seven-year-old child — and the shooting of another youth during the July 2024 uprising in Rampura, Dhaka.

The verdict, to be broadcast live, will be delivered by the three-member bench headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, sitting alongside Justice Shafiul Alam and Justice Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury.

Five persons stand accused in the case, including former Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Habibur Rahman. Of them, only former Assistant Sub-Inspector Chanchal Chandra Sarkar of Rampura Police Outpost is currently in custody.

The remaining four accused — Rahman, former Additional Deputy Commissioner of Khilgaon Division Md Rashedul Islam, former Rampura Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Mashiur Rahman, and former Sub-Inspector Tarikul Islam Bhuiyan — are absconding.

Habibur Rahman has already been sentenced to death by the tribunal in a separate crimes against humanity case over the Chankharpul killings.

The case centres on three incidents in the Banasree area on July 19, 2024. In the first, Md Nadim Hossain was shot dead. In the second, Amir Hossain was critically wounded after being shot while clinging to the ledge of an under-construction building. In the third, a bullet fired at seven-year-old Basit Khan Musa passed through the child's head and fatally struck his grandmother, Maya Islam.

The prosecution has charged the accused with murder, attempted murder, and the orchestration of coordinated attacks on civilians — three distinct counts of crimes against humanity.

The tribunal's investigation agency submitted its report to the Office of the Chief Prosecutor on July 31 last year. Formal charges were filed on August 7, charges were framed on September 18, and witness testimony — spanning 13 prosecution witnesses — ran from October 23 to January 13. Closing arguments concluded on February 3.

Sunday's judgment, originally fixed for March 4 before being deferred, will mark the fifth verdict delivered by the International Crimes Tribunal in connection with alleged crimes against humanity committed during the July uprising.