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nitrogen750,000 people fled early Myanmar In 2017, government forces captured Rohingya villages, killing thousands of civilians and leaving a trail of alleged abuse and sexual violence.
Nearly ten years later, The perpetrators will eventually be brought to justice as international court of justice Hearing of landmark case alleging state government genocide.
This week Gambia will have a chance to outline its case before Myanmar, which denies the accusations, responds. World Court takes unusual move Witnesses will also be allowed three days to share their stories.
The proceedings are expected to set a precedent that could influence litigation in South Africa Israel The Gaza war is the first genocide case to be heard by the ICJ in more than a decade.
independent A look back at the Rohingya crisis and how a two-week trial could bring justice to the victims.
Who are the Rohingyas?
The Rohingya are a self-identified ethnic minority group living in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. They claim to be descendants of Arab traders and other groups who have lived in the area for generations. The majority are Sufi Muslims.
Today, there are approximately 3.5 million Rohingya people worldwide. As of 2017, approximately 1 million people lived in the extremely poor Rakhine state on the west coast.
Muslim minority groups have suffered legal persecution in Myanmar since the 1970s, with the Myanmar government treating them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. The government refused to grant them citizenship, rendering them effectively stateless unless they could prove pre-1948 residency.
They are subject to restrictions on marriage, family planning, finding a job and religious freedom. In some areas, laws limit the number of children they can have. They also need government approval to move or travel out of town.
Tensions with the Buddhist majority sometimes erupted into conflict.
Activists hope the upcoming case will start a process of healing and hold the state accountable for its discriminatory practices.
Wai Wai Nu, founder and executive director of the Women’s Peace Network, said: “Seeing The Gambia’s landmark case against Myanmar finally reach the merits stage gives the Rohingya new hope that our decades of suffering may finally be over.”
“Amid the ongoing violations against the Rohingya people, the world must resolutely pursue justice and find a path to end impunity in Myanmar and restore our rights.”
What happened in the 2017 conflict?
Tensions reached a peak in August 2017 when the Rohingya Muslim militant group Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) claimed responsibility for attacks on 30 police posts and a military base in the towns of Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung.
The government reported 104 deaths, including mainly militants as well as 12 security force personnel and some civilians. The Rohingya Salvation Army was declared a terrorist organization and the Myanmar military began taking counter-insurgency measures.
During that campaign, the army was accused of razing nearly 300 villages, deliberately attacking civilians, and raping and assaulting women and girls.
The military has been accused of shooting civilians as they seek asylum and planting landmines near the border. A 2017 United Nations fact-finding mission found clear patterns of abuses, including sexual violence, systematic targeting of civilians, and impunity allowed for security forces.
They said the Myanmar government had shown “genocidal intent” against the Rohingya people. Myanmar denies genocide, rejects the UN findings as “biased and flawed” and says its crackdown targets Rohingya rebels who carried out the attacks.
Nearly one million people in Myanmar were brutally murdered, and nearly three-quarters fled to Bangladesh. They found more conflict when they arrived, suffering continued violence from criminal and armed groups. Many people were forced to return to Myanmar.
While on the run, Myanmar reportedly began clearing abandoned villages to build new security bases, homes and infrastructure. The state says it plans to return the Rohingya to the country for resettlement. Human Rights Watch explain These villages should be retained as crime scenes for review by the United Nations.
As human rights groups pressure the government, foreign countries including the United States, Canada, Norway and South Korea have increased aid. Related to global aid cuts in 2025 Acute malnutrition increased by 27%.
In late 2023, violence erupted again and an informal ceasefire ended. Human Rights Watch reported that the military used helicopter gunships, artillery and ground attacks to conduct indiscriminate attacks on civilians.
The Arakan Army allegedly shelled, looted and burned Rohingya communities in spring 2024.
What is the lawyer investigating?
In November 2019, The Gambia filed a lawsuit with the International Court of Justice, accusing Myanmar of committing genocide and violating the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
The case is not a criminal case against an individual but calls for a legal determination of Myanmar’s responsibility as a state for the genocide. The hearing is scheduled to begin on January 12, 2026, and will continue until January 29.
The Gambia will outline its case in the first week of hearings from January 12 to 15. Myanmar, which denies genocide, can take a stand from January 16 to January 20.
The court also allocated three days to hear witness statements. These hearings will be closed to the public and media.
The findings could become important in any future genocide cases, especially since The Gambia and some of the countries involved in the case, including Canada, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, believe genocide is not limited to mass killings.
The intervening countries said in writing that courts should not only focus on the death toll to determine genocidal intent, but also consider forced displacement, crimes against children and sexual and gender-based crimes.
“Genocide is not accomplished through mass murder,” said Elise Kepler, executive director of the Global Justice Center. “Sexual and reproductive violence against Rohingya women and girls in Myanmar is designed to destroy families, threaten the future, and eliminate the possibility of survival as a group.”
In its application, Gambia said it would ask the court to find that Myanmar had breached its obligations under the Genocide Convention, including by failing to prevent and punish genocide.
It also seeks to ensure that perpetrators are tried and punished and that Myanmar provides compensation to victims. Such relief would include “the safe and dignified return of forcibly displaced Rohingya people, with respect for their full citizenship and human rights.”
While the trial will not result in individual prison sentences, human rights experts say it will set a global precedent for what the world is willing to tolerate.
Zaw Win, senior human rights expert at Fortify Rights, explain: “This trial poses a major challenge to Myanmar’s military junta’s grip on power and impunity.
“Impunity depends on silence, and justice begins with acknowledgment of the suffering of the Rohingya and all people in Myanmar affected by atrocity crimes. This trial is an important step towards accountability.”