An inquiry commission has verified more than 250 cases of disappearances, allegedly carried out by the security forces, spanning the 15 years that Hasina's Awami League was in power.

It has received about 1,700 complaints.

Hasina, 77, fled Dhaka by helicopter to India in August 2024 after a student-led mass uprising. She has been named as a co-accused in cases of enforced disappearance being heard by Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT).

The tribunal is prosecuting former senior figures connected to Hasina's ousted government and her now-banned Awami League party.

It is the first time that such a large number of senior-ranking former and serving security officials -- including at least 16 generals -- are likely to face civilian trials.

"Judicial process never considers who the perpetrators are, their status, or their power," Md Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor at the ICT, told reporters.

"Those who never cared about the trust people had bestowed upon them, who took salaries, wore uniforms, and yet stood against the state, the constitution, and the law are now being held accountable," he said.

Prosecutors submitted charge sheets on Wednesday related to two incidents of enforced disappearances but cited human rights groups to say the total number of cases could be as high as 700.

They said many of the enforced disappearances were carried out as part of anti-terror operations, supported by Western nations, which Hasina used to bolster her government's legitimacy.