{
  "id": 3011540,
  "title": "Bangladesh court upholds two death sentences and reduces four in case of teen burned alive",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/24/bangladesh-court-upholds-two-death-sentences-and-reduces-four-in-case",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-24T11:44:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Malay Mail",
    "slug": "malay-mail-malaymail",
    "url": "https://www.malaymail.com/news/money/2026/08/24/bangladesh-court-upholds-two-death-sentences-and-reduces-four-in-case-of-teen-burned-alive/232527"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "DHAKA, Aug 24 — A Bangladesh appeals court has upheld the death sentences for two ex-headteachers, SM Siraj-Ud-Dowlah and another co-conspirator, in the shocking case of a teen student who was burned alive after accusing the headteacher of sexual harassment. The court maintained the death penalty for the co-conspirator, while acquitting ten other defendants. The teen victim, Nusrat Jahan Rafi, suffered burns to 80 percent of her body before dying in the hospital four days later. Her death sparked outrage across the nation, with protesters staging demonstrations in Dhaka for \"exemplary punishment\" of the killers. In 2019, a court had sentenced 16 individuals to death for this crime, but today the high court acquitted ten defendants and reduced four death sentences to life imprisonment, criticizing the earlier decision for \"wholesale death sentences.\" The Attorney General expressed his disappointment, stating that the four defendants tied Nusrat's hands and legs, poured kerosene on her, and ensured her death. Nusrat's family now faces threats of retaliation, and her brother, Mahmudul Hasan, has pleaded with the government to ensure their safety.",
  "summary": "DHAKA, Aug 24 — A Bangladesh appeals court upheld today the death sentence for an ex-headteacher who burned alive...",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}