Khalilur Rahman sentenced to death for war crimes in Netrokona

A tribunal has given death sentence to Khalilur Rahman, a commander of the anti-liberation Al-Badr force, to death for crimes against humanity in Netrokona during the Liberation War in 1971.

A three-member panel of the International Crimes Tribunal led by Justice Md Shahinur Islam delivered the verdict on Tuesday.

Khalilur, a fugitive, faced five charges relating to war crimes, including the murders of 22 people and the rape of a woman. He was found guilty on all charges.

The tribunal handed down the death penalty on four charges and 10 years' imprisonment on the other. Rana Dasgupta and Rezia Sultana Chaman conducted the prosecution while state-appointed lawyer Gazi MH Tamim represented the accused.

After hearing the arguments of both sides, the case was put on hold for further deliberation pending judgment on Jul 18.

The investigation report in the case was filed on Jan 30, 2017. At the time, there were five accused, but one of them, Ramzan Ali, died during treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

The three other suspects were Khalilur's brother Azizur Rahman, Ashok Ali and Md Shahnewaz. The trial commenced after the court framed charges against them.

While Khalilur was on the run, the three others died in prison at various points of the trial proceedings. As a result, Khalilur was the only one to face judgment.

The remaining charges include attempted rape, abduction and torture, and looting and arson in Durgapur and Kalmakanda.

In 1971, Khalilur was a member of the Islami Chhatra Sangha, which later came to be known as Islami Chhatra Shibir - the student affiliate of Jamaat-e-Islami. He later joined Al-Badr and became a commander of the paramilitary force in Chandigar Union.