Bangladesh has executed five former army officers convicted of killing the nation's independence leader in 1975.
Officials at the country's central prison made the announcement early Thursday, saying the five were hanged after meeting with their families one final time on Wednesday. Bangladesh's Supreme Court upheld the death sentences Wednesday, removing the last legal barrier to the executions.
The men were convicted of killing Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led the independence struggle that resulted in the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, following a war with Pakistan. He was later gunned down in an army coup, along with his wife and three sons. The high-profile trial concluded under the government of the assassinated leader's daughter, Sheikh Hasina. She returned to power last year as prime minister for a second term.
The coup leaders escaped justice for 25 years because the military rulers who governed Bangladesh after Mujibur Rahman's murder granted them indemnity. Six other men also have been convicted and sentenced to death for their roles in the coup. But Bangladeshi officials say they are living as fugitives in other countries.
