Hasina's 'Shoot Them' Order During 2024 Unrest Revealed

Al Jazeera has revealed new evidence suggesting that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina gave a direct order to security forces to use lethal force during the 2024 July uprising, including authorising shootings from helicopters on protesters.

The investigative report, based on a series of leaked phone conversations verified by Al Jazeera, includes a call where Hasina is allegedly heard instructing former Dhaka South City mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh to take aggressive action to quell the mass protests, even suggesting the use of helicopters to target crowds.

In the audio clip recorded on 18 July 2024 by the National Telecommunications Monitoring Centre (NTMC), Hasina says:

“My instructions have already been given. I've issued an open order completely. Now they will use lethal weapons, shoot wherever they find them."

She adds, “Wherever they notice any gathering, it's from above — now it's being done from above — it has already started in several places. Some [protesters] have moved.”

At the time, the government denied any use of aerial force, but Al Jazeera quotes Dr Shabir Sharif, an emergency physician at Dhaka’s Popular Medical College Hospital, who says he witnessed helicopters firing near the hospital entrance.

“We treated student protesters with unusual bullet wounds,” he said. “The bullets entered either the shoulder or the chest and stayed lodged inside. When we saw the X-rays, we were shocked by the size of the bullets.”

While Al Jazeera could not independently verify the type of ammunition used, the United Nations later reported that RAB (Rapid Action Battalion) had fired 738 tear gas shells and over 700 sound-stun grenades during the protests.

According to prosecutors at the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), the leaked recordings may be submitted as evidence in trials for alleged crimes against humanity committed during the July 2024 unrest.

ICT chief prosecutor Tajul Islam told Al Jazeera that Hasina was fully aware she was being recorded.

“In some cases, others said, ‘We should not discuss this over telephone,’ and the Prime Minister replied, ‘Yes, I know it is being recorded — no problem.’”

He added, “She has dug a very deep ditch for others. Now she’s in that ditch herself.”

Earlier this month, the BBC also verified a separate leaked audio of Hasina allegedly authorising lethal force against student-led protesters.

The protests began as opposition to the civil service quota system that favoured descendants of 1971 war veterans but soon escalated into a broader nationwide movement demanding democratic reforms.

On 5 August 2024, the day Hasina reportedly fled the country by helicopter, demonstrators stormed her residence, leading to one of the deadliest days of the crisis and ultimately ending her 15-year rule.