Gambian counsel urges ICJ to reject military narrative as landmark Rohingya genocide hearings conclude in The Hague

Mizzima

In a final push before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Gambian legal counsel Paul Reichler delivered a searing closing argument, asserting that Myanmar’s military operations were a calculated attempt to destroy the Rohingya as an ethnic group rather than a legitimate response to insurgency.

Reichler stated that testimony from 42 witnesses collected by the UN’s Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) further substantiated the conclusions of the UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFM).

He cited evidence showing that the military surrounded civilians in locations such as Chut Pyin village in northern Rakhine State, ordered that “every house be burned,” and carried out brutal killings of pregnant women and children.

Reichler also included the names of witnesses in his case addressing military atrocities in Rakhine State, a move that responded to earlier criticisms raised by Myanmar’s own lawyers.

He argued that the systematic sexual violence against women was a deliberate strategy to force the Rohingya population to flee. He added that the military’s actions were aimed not merely at expelling the Rohingya from the country but at the destruction of the entire ethnic group.

Reichler emphasized that the findings of the Fact-Finding Mission were not the work of a single body but were consistent with investigations conducted by numerous international organizations, including the US State Department, PILPG, Fortify Rights, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Amnesty International, the International Crisis Group, and Save the Children.

He stressed that while each organization conducted its own independent investigation, all reached the same conclusion.

Myanmar has claimed that its military operations were aimed at suppressing the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), but Reichler argued that in reality the response targeted the entire civilian population.

He also criticized arguments put forward by Myanmar’s legal team, noting that they rely heavily on the military’s own reports, statements from military officers, and coverage by military-controlled media, which he said lack credibility.

Reichler urged the court to exercise particular caution when evaluating such evidence, warning that much of the information presented by Myanmar is under the direct control of the military.