Dhaka, Nov. 23 -- The United Nations' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has found the detention of Bangladeshi filmmaker, writer, and human rights defender Shahriar Kabir "arbitrary and unlawful"

In its detailed opinion submitted on Saturday, the Working Group found that Kabir's arrest, repeated remand orders and nearly year-long pretrial detention "lacked legal basis, breached fair-trial standards, and involved discriminatory targeting".

The opinion, adopted at the Working Group's 103rd session in August 2025, follows a communication submitted in February and a late interim government response in May.

The UN panel reviewed extensive documentation, testimony and legal arguments before concluding that Bangladesh violated multiple pro...