Former Bangladesh cricket captain Shakib Al Hasan's ancestral home was attacked by a mob that smashed windows and hurled petrol bombs after he appeared alongside ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in her first public media appearance since she was removed from power in 2024, during which she pledged to return to Bangladesh in December.
Police said a group of attackers targeted Shakib's residence in the town of Magura, about 170 kilometers (105 miles) southwest of the capital, Dhaka, on Wednesday.
The assault sparked a fire on the upper floor of the house. The property was unoccupied at the time, and no injuries were reported.
Reuters was unable to reach Shakib for comment. The attack came just hours after the former Awami League lawmaker joined a virtual event hosted by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia in New Delhi. During an audio address, Hasina reiterated her intention to return to Bangladesh despite having been sentenced to death.
Shakib, who was elected to Parliament as an Awami League candidate in January 2024, has remained outside Bangladesh since the student-led uprising that toppled Hasina's government. He faces multiple investigations, including allegations of murder, embezzlement, fraud and money laundering.
"I will return to my people," Hasina said. "I know they may put me in jail or they may kill me, but I still have to go back."
The event, held on the second anniversary of her ouster, was Hasina's first public interaction with the media since she fled Bangladesh in 2024. She also said the ban on the Awami League, the party she led for more than four decades, should be lifted after it was barred from political activity following her ouster.
Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry condemned Hasina's media appearance, describing it as "an affront to the sovereignty of Bangladesh" and warning that allowing her to address the media from India could harm bilateral relations. Hasina, 78, has been living in New Delhi since August 2024. Bangladesh has sought her extradition from India, which says the request is being examined under its legal procedures.
In November 2025, the country's war crimes tribunal sentenced Hasina to death in absentia over the deadly crackdown on the 2024 student-led uprising, charges she has dismissed as politically motivated.
