How many people were martyred during the July Uprising? Even two years later, the answer remains unclear. Different sources continue to provide different figures.
The government presents one set of numbers, senior government officials cite others, while various political parties and organisations also report differing totals.
The movement began in early July 2024 under the banner of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, demanding reforms to the government job quota system.
Following a bloody crackdown by the then Awami League government, the protests evolved into a mass uprising. After 36 days of demonstrations, Sheikh Hasina’s government fell on 5 August that year.
The interim government established afterwards recognised those killed during the July Uprising as July Martyrs and those injured as July Warriors.
In January 2025, the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs published the first official list of July Martyrs, containing 834 names.
In June, the names of 10 more individuals were added, bringing the total to 844, and an official gazette was issued accordingly.
In August, however, the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs removed the names of eight individuals from the list. It explained that four names had appeared twice, while the remaining four had not been directly involved in the July Movement.
As a result, the official gazette reduced the total number of July Martyrs to 836.
The July Mass Uprising Directorate, established to preserve the history of the July–August student-led mass uprising, finalise the comprehensive list of martyrs and injured individuals, oversee medical treatment for the injured, and support their families, reports that one name was removed from the gazette in January this year. A further three names were removed in February.
In April, the government issued another gazette adding the names of 12 individuals to the list of July Martyrs. Subsequently, on 13 May, it removed one more name from the list.
According to the latest official gazette, the total number of July Martyrs now stands at 843, while the number of injured individuals stands at 14,370.
An official of the July Mass Uprising Directorate told Prothom Alo, "So far, gazettes have been issued for 856 individuals. Following the verification process, we removed several names from the list of July Martyrs. Once a name is removed, no other martyr's name will be added under that gazette number. As a result, the official number of July Martyrs currently stands at 843."
Who are the July martyrs?
Under the official definition, July Martyrs are individuals who lost their lives during the mass uprising in attacks carried out by law enforcement agencies under the control of the then government or by members of the political party that was in power at the time.
The government publishes the names of recognised martyrs through official notifications. It has added names to the list on several occasions, while it has removed others after determining that they did not qualify as martyrs.
In addition, many families continue to search for missing relatives. Consequently, many officials involved in the process believe that the list of July Martyrs is still not complete.
Anu Muhammad, a retired professor at Jahangirnagar University who led the Drohajatra (March of Defiance) during the July Uprising, told Prothom Alo, "It is the government's responsibility to determine the final list of martyrs. If the government does not have sufficient information of its own, it should verify the data provided by the United Nations and publish a definitive figure. Given the issues of compensation, the use of public funds, and our responsibility to history, the government should promptly eliminate the confusion and publish an accurate list."
Conflicting figures on the number of martyrs
Government ministers, political leaders, and various public and private individuals and organisations continue to provide conflicting figures regarding the number of people martyred during the July Movement.
Some claim that 1,500 people were martyred, others say 2,000, while some state that thousands lost their lives.
After the fall of Sheikh Hasina's government during the July Uprising, Professor Muhammad Yunus assumed office as Chief Adviser to the interim government on 8 August 2024.
In several addresses to the nation after taking office, he referred to the number of July Martyrs using different figures, describing them at various times as 1,000, 1,500, or even thousands.
What the UN report says
The figures most frequently cited for the number of July Martyrs are 1,400 and more than 2,000. Among these, the figure of 1,400 originates from the findings of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission.
On 12 February last year, the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission published its investigation into the human rights violations committed during July and August.
Citing information from multiple sources, the report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Fact-Finding Team stated that the number of protest-related deaths between 15 July and 5 August could have reached 1,400.
What the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation says
On 12 September last year, the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation was formally established to support those killed and injured during the July Mass Uprising. It is a government-approved, non-political, voluntary, and public welfare non-governmental organisation.
The foundation's website currently states on its homepage that more than 820 people were martyred. However, the list of martyrs published on the website contains 835 names.
Meanwhile, in September last year, an organisation called the July Revolutionary Alliance published its own list of martyrs from the July Mass Uprising. The organisation claims that more than 1,500 people were martyred, although its published list contains the names of 650 individuals.
List of injured individuals continues to grow
According to sources at the July Mass Uprising Directorate, the directorate has not received any new applications relating to July Martyrs. However, it expects to add more than 1,000 additional names to the list of injured individuals.
The same sources said that the number of recognised martyrs could still decrease.
They explained that staff shortages at the directorate have delayed many tasks, making it impossible to complete the verification process on schedule. The directorate also could not confirm when it would finalise the list.
When asked about the matter, Mohammad Anwarul Naser, director general of the July Mass Uprising Directorate, told Prothom Alo, "During the tenure of the interim government, a circular was issued suspending the verification process. We will reconsider the matter in the current context. To that end, we have formed a committee chaired by the Minister for Liberation War Affairs. The committee will hold meetings and decide how to proceed."