Riots in Bangladesh After Islamist Leader Sentenced to Death

Abdul Molla convicted of war crimes in the 1971 war for independence from Pakistan

The Bangladesh Supreme Court on Tuesday handed down the death penalty to an opposition leader with the main Islamist party convicted of committing mass murder during the 1971 war of independence with Pakistan.

As word of the verdict against Abdul Quader Molla of the Jamaat-e-Islami spread, Islamist protestors in the capital of Dhaka and in the port city of Chittagong marched, exploded homemade bombs, torched vehicles and threw stones at police. A few hours later, Jamaat called a two-day nationwide strike starting Wednesday, decrying the "government conspiracy to kill our leaders," in a statement.