Photo: Collected
The UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) will deliver its verdict next Thursday on whether Myanmar committed genocide against the Rohingya people.
It is set to be one of the most important rulings on genocide allegations under international law since the Second World War. It could also have an impact on the separate ongoing genocide case against Israel over Gaza.
In 2017, several lakh Rohingya fled to Bangladesh in the face of a Myanmar military operation. Alleging that genocide was committed in that operation, the West African country of the Gambia filed the case with the ICJ in 2019.
The judges took seven years to hear and review the documents in the case, which was filed alleging violation of the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.
A key consideration in proving genocide is whether there was an intent to destroy a group in whole or in part.
According to lawyers working on behalf of the Rohingya, the pattern of village-by-village attacks, arson of homes, killings, rape and sexual violence could prove important in establishing genocidal intent.
In closed-door hearings last January, the court also took testimony from several Rohingya refugees sheltering in Bangladesh. Their accounts described killings, children being thrown into fires and horrific experiences of mass graves.
Myanmar, however, has denied the genocide allegations. The country claims the 2017 military operation was a security operation against insurgents.
The ICJ verdict could increase international pressure on Myanmar. It could also become an important precedent in the judicial assessment of the genocide case brought by South Africa against Israel.
More than 10 lakh Rohingya are currently sheltering in Bangladesh. An estimated fewer than six lakh Rohingya remain inside Myanmar. Source: The Guardian
Background
According to Human Rights Watch on 3 November, the ICJ will deliver its verdict in the case on 19 November 2026; the Gambia filed the case in November 2019 with the backing of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
According to a 4 November statement by US-based law firm Foley Hoag, the court unanimously ordered provisional measures against Myanmar in January 2020, and in July 2022 delivered a judgment upholding its jurisdiction in the case.
At a glance
According to a ThePrint report of 3 November, the ICJ is delivering a verdict in a genocide case after more than a decade; it will be the third such verdict in the court’s history.
Sources
Background sources: Human Rights Watch, 3 November 2026; Foley Hoag, 4 November 2026; ThePrint, 3 November 2026
