This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

Bangladesh's supreme court has commuted the death sentence of an Islamist political leader whose conviction last year for war crimes during the country's 1971 war for independence sparked deadly protests.

Delwar Hossain Sayedee, one of the leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami, must remain in prison "for the rest of his natural life", said the chief justice, Muzammel Hossain. The judge did not explain his decision for reducing the sentence.

A war crimes tribunal convicted Sayedee in February 2013 for eight counts involving mass killings, rape and atrocities committed during the nine-month war against Pakistan in 1971. His death sentence sparked days of clashes that killed at least 70 people across the country.

Jamaat-e-Islami, the largest Islamist party in the Muslim-majority country, campaigned against the independence war but denies committing any atrocities. Bangladesh claims 3 million people died during the war and millions fled to neighbouring India.

The prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has called the trials a long-overdue effort to obtain justice against war criminals four decades after Bangladesh split from Pakistan. But critics say she is using the tribunals to weaken the country's opposition parties.

Prosecutor Tureen Afroze says she guardedly welcomed the verdict but needed to see the full decision before she could comment further. Sayedee's defence said he would appeal.