A senior leader from Bangladesh's branch of Jamat-e-Islami has been charged with war crimes for allegedly leading groups that took part in killing, looting, arson and rape of Bangladeshis during the country's 1971 independence war against Pakistan.
Bangladesh won independence from Pakistan that year -- with help from India -- after a nine-month war.
A special tribunal has been up by the Bangladesh government to deal with charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity stemming from the war.
The tribunal accepted 20 of 31 charges filed by the prosecution against Delwar Hossain Sayeedi of the Jamaat-e-Islami party.
Sayeedi is accused of being involved in the killing of more than 50 people, torching villages, rape, looting and forcibly converting Hindus to Islam.
Sayeedi was arrested last year along with four other leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami who are accused of war crimes, including party chief Matiur Rahman Nizami. Sayeedi is the first to be indicted by the tribunal.
