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Bangladesh’s top court has rejected a final appeal by the leader of an Islamist party against a death sentence for atrocities committed during the country’s 1971 war for independence from Pakistan.
The August 30 ruling by a five-judge panel in the case against Mir Quasem Ali means the 63-year-old financier of the Jamaat-e-Islami party could be hanged at any time unless he obtains clemency from the president.
Ali’s lawyer, Khandaker Mahbub Hossain, said on August 30 that the Jamaat-e-Islami leader and his family have yet to decide whether to seek clemency.
The ruling against Ali comes amid a wave attacks by Islamic militants in Bangladesh.
The most deadly was on July 1, when gunmen stormed into a cafe in the capital, Dhaka, and killed 20 hostages.
Most of the slain victims were foreigners.
Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.