Al Jazeera English’s investigative film “Hasina: 36 Days in July,” which examined the deadly crackdown on Bangladesh’s 2024 student-led uprising and the final weeks of Sheikh Hasina’s government, has been nominated for the 2026 International Emmy Awards.
The film has been nominated in the Current Affairs category, alongside productions from France, the United Kingdom and Brazil. The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences will announce the winners at its awards gala in New York on November 23. This year’s International Emmys feature 64 nominees across 16 categories from 22 countries.
Bangladeshi origin journalist Zulkernain Saer, who worked with Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit on the film, shared news of the nomination on his verified Facebook page.
“Grateful and humbled to share that ‘Hasina – 36 Days in July’ has been nominated for the 2026 International Emmy Awards in the Current Affairs category,” Zulkernain wrote.
“This film belongs first to the people of Bangladesh: the students, workers and families who lived through those 36 days, and those who did not survive them,” he said. “Many trusted us with their testimony at great personal risk. This recognition is theirs.”
Released by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit in July 2025, the film reconstructed the final weeks of Hasina’s 15-year rule using covertly recorded telephone conversations, leaked documents, witness testimony and other material obtained by the investigative team.
Among its central findings were recordings that Al Jazeera said showed Hasina ordering the use of lethal force against protesters.
The investigation also examined the killing of student Abu Sayed in Rangpur, attempts to influence the account of his death, the shutdown of internet access during the unrest and the surveillance apparatus operating under the former government.
The Awami League disputed key findings of the investigation. In a response published by Al Jazeera when the film was released, a party spokesperson said Hasina had not specifically authorised security forces to use lethal force and challenged the authenticity and interpretation of one of the recordings.
The International Emmy nomination puts the film in competition with “Arte Reportage: My Father’s Hair” from France, “Exposure: Breaking Ranks: Inside Israel’s War” from the UK and Brazil’s “Profissão Repórter: Feminice.”Although centred on Bangladesh, “Hasina: 36 Days in July” is listed under Qatar because it was produced by Al Jazeera English.
The film had already received international recognition earlier this year, winning an Overseas Press Club Award in April.
Zulkernain described the International Emmy nomination as a rare moment for Bangladeshi storytelling on the global television stage.
“It is also one of the very few times a story from Bangladesh has reached the International Emmys,” he wrote.
One notable precedent came in 2004, when ATN Bangla’s “Amrao Pari”, a 25-minute documentary produced by Bangladeshi teenagers, received an International Emmy-linked honour.
The programme told the story of Abul Khair, a boy who prevented a passenger train from travelling over a damaged railway track by signalling it to stop. Contemporary reports described it as the first Bangladeshi television production to receive such recognition.
Zulkernain said he hoped the latest nomination would open more doors for Bangladeshi journalists and filmmakers.
“I hope this nomination makes the road a little easier for the many talented Bangladeshi journalists and filmmakers whose work deserves the world's attention,” he wrote.
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