India, Aug. 5 -- Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said she will return to the country in December, nearly two years after she fled Dhaka following anti-government protests.

In her first public address since then, Hasina acknowledged that she could be arrested or even killed upon her arrival in Dhaka, but asserted that such possibilities would not stop her from returning.

"I may be sent to prison or be killed, but fear cannot decide my duty to the people. I lost my family in 1975 and spent six years in exile. I am not worried about my own future, but about the future of Bangladesh."

Hasina said she wants to return to Bangladesh to help restore the country to the path of development and ensure its people have s...