Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam was released from Dhaka Central Jail this morning following his acquittal by the Appellate Division in a 1971 war crimes case.

Azharul had been undergoing treatment at BSMMU Hospital and walked free at 9:05 am. 

The Supreme Court on Tuesday overturned his 2014 death sentence by the International Crimes Tribunal, calling it a “miscarriage of justice.”

This marks the first time a person sentenced to death for war crimes in Bangladesh has been acquitted through appeal. Azharul’s release concludes a legal battle that began over a decade ago.

MN/SMS/