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ICJ Opens Landmark Genocide Hearings Against Myanmar Over Rohingya

The Gambia opened arguments alleging genocidal intent in Myanmar’s 2016–2017 operations, with the court’s findings expected to carry weight beyond this case.

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Myanmar's Union Minister for the Ministry of the President's Office Ko Ko Hlaing sits in the courtroom, as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) starts two weeks of hearings in a landmark case brought by Gambia, which accuses Myanmar of committing genocide against the Rohingya, a minority Muslim group, in The Hague, Netherlands, January 12, 2026. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
UN top court set to open Myanmar Rohingya genocide case
FILE - In this Sept. 7, 2017, file photo, smoke rises from a burned house in Gawdu Zara village, northern Rakhine state, where the vast majority of the country's 1.1 million Rohingya lived, Myanmar. (AP Photo, File)

Overview

  • On the first day, Gambia justice minister Dawda Jallow told judges the Rohingya were “targeted for destruction,” describing killings, sexual violence and mass displacement.
  • The three-week schedule has The Gambia presenting through January 15, Myanmar responding January 16–20, and closed sessions to hear Rohingya survivors, a first for any international court.
  • Myanmar denies genocide and characterizes its 2017 campaign as a counterterrorism response, a stance earlier defended at the court by Aung San Suu Kyi.
  • Legal observers say the hearings could shape how genocidal intent is proven and influence other ICJ cases, including South Africa’s proceedings concerning Israel.
  • A final judgment could order trials, reparations and citizenship guarantees for Rohingya, though enforcement would rely on political will; parallel ICC efforts include a pending arrest warrant request for junta chief Min Aung Hlaing.