A press briefing by Hasina and Joy, and eight false claims
On October 19, the US-based pro-Awami League think tank Center for USA-Bangladesh Relations (CFUSBR) held a press conference titled “Democracy, Extremism and Emerging Threat to Regional Security” in Washington, D.C., attended virtually by ousted Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
Her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, a former ICT adviser, attended in person, while former principal secretary Dr Kaikaus Ahmad delivered the keynote address. CFUSBR Executive Director and USA Bangabandhu Parishad General Secretary Rana Hasan Mahmud moderated the event. Parishad President Dr Nurun Nabi also spoke.
The banned Awami League published the briefing on its official Facebook page.
The speakers, particularly Hasina and Joy, made several claims about Bangladesh’s July Uprising and subsequent events that were false, misleading, or unsupported by credible evidence.
Claim one: US interference in July Uprising
At the press conference, Joy and Nurun Nabi separately claimed that Hasina’s ouster and the change of government were part of a US-funded regime-change operation. They alleged that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) spent $50 million to remove Sheikh Hasina from power.
However, they provided no substantial evidence to corroborate their claims.
Multiple searches using Google by Waadaa Fact-Check also found no reports of USAID involvement in the Uprising.
USAID, an independent federal agency of the US government established in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy, manages civilian foreign aid and development assistance. It funds humanitarian assistance and civil society-related programmes in Bangladesh. Its expenditures are publicly documented, and no record has been found indicating that it spent money to oust Sheikh Hasina.
Keyword searches also found no reports substantiating the allegation in reputable international or domestic media. However, several Facebook pages associated with the Awami League have circulated unverified stories about it. See here and here.
Meanwhile, the White House directly rejected allegations of US involvement in Sheikh Hasina’s removal as “completely false”. On August 12, 2024, Karine Jean-Pierre, then White House press secretary, said during a press briefing in Washington that the allegations were entirely false.
Joy also alleged that USAID funded the change of government and that the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the International Republican Institute (IRI) organised and trained various groups that took part in the protests.
However, Waadaa found no evidence supporting Joy’s claims in credible international or national media reports.
Joy’s own remarks do not substantiate his allegations. Although he made sweeping accusations, he did not provide grant numbers, the names of specific recipients, financial records, training documents, or independently verified evidence showing that these organisations worked to overthrow the government through violence.
Claim two: Pakistan supplied weapons and money to the protesters
Joy alleged that the protesters received weapons and funding from Pakistan. He did not present any specific arms shipment records, financial transactions, names of intermediaries, or independently verified intelligence assessments to support the claim.
The student-led uprising in July 2024 began primarily as a protest demanding quota reform and later evolved into a spontaneous popular uprising against government repression. There is no established evidence of institutional or financial involvement by Pakistan in the protests.
After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, politically motivated propaganda of this kind circulated on social media, particularly through some Indian media outlets.
Waadaa found no evidence-based reporting on the allegation in reputable media.
Claim three: UN estimate of 1,400 deaths is fabricated
Joy questioned the findings of an investigative report published by the United Nations’ Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), which estimated that up to 1,400 people may have been killed between July 1 and August 15, 2024.
Joy said the UN report had not provided a list of names and that the former interim government had reported a much lower death toll.
Joy’s claim is false.
The estimate was based on hundreds of interviews, eyewitness accounts, and other evidence. The OHCHR conducted its fact-finding investigation through in-person and online interviews with more than 230 victims across the country, as well as 36 interviews with government officials, law enforcement personnel, and political representatives, including former and serving senior officials with direct knowledge of the relevant events.
The findings were corroborated by authenticated videos and photographs, medical and forensic analysis, weapons analysis, and other information. Read the detailed report here.
According to the government’s official estimate, 864 protesters killed during the Uprising have been identified. Authorities say many others were buried in unmarked graves, requiring DNA tests for identification.
In countries like Bangladesh, identifying those killed in such events can take years.
Claim four: More than 1,000 police personnel are missing, and most have fled to India
Joy claimed that more than 1,000 police personnel could not be traced and that some had fled to India.
The claim is misleading.
According to Bangladesh Police data, 44 police personnel were killed during the July Uprising, during which security forces, including police, killed up to 1,400 protesters.
So far, no family member of any other police personnel has challenged this figure with a different claim, nor has any local or international human rights organisation issued a statement raising such concerns.
Police Headquarters also said that a total of 187 police personnel were absent from their workplaces for a period following the political transition. Some had overstayed their leave, some had resigned voluntarily, some had been dismissed, while others had gone into hiding for fear of legal proceedings. Prothom Alo, the country's largest Bengali newspaper, published a report on the matter.
Claim five: Interim government passed an indemnity law granting protesters blanket immunity for 'genocidal crimes'
Joy alleged that the interim government had granted protesters in the July Uprising blanket legal immunity, which he said proved that they had committed “genocide”.
The claim is misleading.
The July Uprising (Protection and Determination of Liability) Ordinance was promulgated in January 2026 and subsequently passed into law on April 8, 2026, by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led government in parliament.
The law provides for the withdrawal of all civil and criminal cases against Uprising protesters over incidents during the protests aimed at restoring democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, and bars future cases over those incidents.
Pending cases will be withdrawn immediately upon an application by the public prosecutor or a government-appointed lawyer, subject to government certification, and the accused will be discharged or acquitted.
Under the law, a murder complaint against a participant in the Uprising cannot be filed directly with a court; complaints must instead be submitted to the National Human Rights Commission.
However, if an investigation establishes that an accused person acted for personal gain or criminally exploited a chaotic situation, the case can be referred to a court for trial.
If a law enforcement officer is a victim, no current or former member of that officer’s force may be assigned to investigate the case.
The Daily Star published a detailed report on the ordinance.
The legal protections provided by the law are real, and similar protections are practised in other parts of the world, particularly in the context of events that occur during democratic movements.
However, the existence of such a law does not constitute evidence that protesters committed genocide.
Claim six: Yunus released all convicted terrorists, including the Holey Artisan attackers
Hasina, Joy, and Nurun Nabi have repeatedly alleged that the interim government released all convicted “terrorists” from prison, including those convicted in the Holey Artisan attack case.
The claim is false.
The High Court, in fact, commuted the death sentences of seven convicted individuals in connection with the Holey Artisan Bakery attack case to life imprisonment in October 2023, when Hasina was in power.
A news report published in July 2026 confirmed that appeals involving the surviving convicts remained pending before the Appellate Division.
Among the seven, Aslam Hossain alias Rash was killed by prison guards’ gunfire amid unrest at Kashimpur High Security Central Jail on August 6, 2024, a day after Hasina fled the country.
The remaining six are currently in prison.
Claim seven: Killers of a US embassy employee have been released
Joy spoke about the alleged release of the convicted killers of a US embassy employee.
The claim is false. He did not identify the victim, the case, the convicted individuals, or any release order.
However, a Dhaka special court in August 2021 sentenced six people to death and acquitted two others in the murder case involving Xulhaz Mannan, a former protocol officer at the US embassy in Dhaka and a USAID employee, and his friend Mahbub Tonoy.
There was no reported incident of any accused being released during the interim government’s tenure.
Claim eight: 35,000 children are missing, including 15,000 who went missing in one year
Hasina alleged that 35,000 children were missing and that 15,000 had gone missing within a year.
The claim is false.
According to Bangladesh Police data, 15,717 children were reported missing between January and July 2026. Of them, 13,679 were recovered or reunited with their families, while 2,038 remained missing.
A report containing the police explanation is available here.
Earlier, Bangladesh Mahila Parishad published a statement making a similar claim to Hasina’s, which was debunked by the fact-checking organisation The Dissent.
More claims
Hasina, Joy, and Nurun Nabi made several other claims that were not substantiated or supported by any credible reports or evidence.
For instance, the speakers claimed that around 30 activists of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami were currently working at the US Embassy in Dhaka and that the Clinton family had influenced the Nobel Committee in awarding Muhammad Yunus the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.
Only claims supported by specific statements or evidence can be fact-checked. Where speakers provide no verifiable details or evidence, Waadaa avoids attempting to debunk claims that cannot be independently assessed.
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