No country is willing to provide refuge to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to KM Nazmul Haque, an assistant press secretary to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, who said India's attempts to relocate her to a third country had failed.

In a Facebook post on Friday, Haque named the United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Finland, United States, Belarus and Qatar, as well as African countries, as unwilling to shelter Hasina.

"The United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Finland, United States, Belarus, Qatar — not even any African country is willing to shelter a perpetrator of mass killings," he wrote in Bengali.

Haque said Hasina's continued presence in New Delhi was becoming increasingly uncomfortable for the Indian government.

He said India was facing questions not only over its bilateral relationship with Bangladesh but also internationally about why it continued to shelter a former leader convicted over the deadly crackdown on Bangladesh's 2024 uprising.

His comments followed a BBC Bangla report describing New Delhi's unsuccessful attempts to find a third country willing to receive Hasina.

"Sheikh Hasina's presence in Delhi is becoming an increasingly embarrassing issue for the Indian government. This is no secret," BBC Bangla reported.

"India is facing criticism not only in its bilateral relations with Bangladesh but also internationally for continuing to shelter a convicted criminal accused of mass killings."

The report said relocating Hasina to a third country would probably have been the most convenient solution for India, but repeated diplomatic efforts had failed.

"Perhaps the best solution for India would have been if she could move to a third country. But despite repeated discussions between Delhi and various countries in the past, those efforts have not succeeded for various reasons," BBC Bangla reported.

It added: "As a result, India now believes that Sheikh Hasina attempting to return to Bangladesh and facing trial there is the only realistic option."

The BBC report did not identify the countries involved in those discussions.

India has not publicly announced any decision to facilitate Hasina's return.

Haque also criticised Hasina and her family, accusing them of abandoning Awami League grassroots activists when her government collapsed in August 2024.

He alleged that Hasina had sent family members abroad before leaving Bangladesh herself and was now seeking to revive her political position by relying on party supporters.

"One after another, the paths before Hasina are closing. As a last resort, the fugitive Sheikh family now wants to return to Bangladesh by relying on the blood of grassroots party activists," he wrote.

He warned Awami League supporters against risking their lives for the former ruling family's political ambitions and urged them to consider their own safety and that of their families.

Hasina has been living in India since fleeing Bangladesh on August 5, 2024, following a deadly student-led mass uprising.

She was subsequently sentenced to death in absentia by Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal for crimes against humanity linked to the crackdown. She has denied wrongdoing.

The former prime minister has announced plans to return to Bangladesh in December.

On November 9, Reuters reported that her lawyers had requested a new Bangladeshi passport and national identity card to facilitate her return.

Bangladesh has sought her extradition from India, but New Delhi has not publicly committed to handing her over.