Dhaka, May 28 -- Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam, who had been on death row since 2014, has expressed gratitude to the "revolutionary heroes" of the July Uprising at an event organised by the party to mark his acquittal in a war crimes case.

Standing on a stage set up near the Shahbagh intersection, Azharul waved to party members and said: "I am now free. I am independent."

The 73-year-old had been held in the cardiac unit of Bangladesh Medical University Hospital under prison custody. He was released at 9:05am on Wednesday.

From early morning, Jamaat leaders and activists had gathered at the hospital to welcome him. He was then taken to the reception in Shahbagh in a black SUV.

Jamaat chief Shafiqur Rahman, deputy chief Syed...