ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrant for Myanmar military regime chief

The ICC authoritative promises that much applications volition beryllium forthcoming arsenic the Rohingya question justness and accountability.

The authoritative of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has requested an planetary apprehension warrant for the subject ruler of Myanmar for the persecution of Rohingya.

The bureau of authoritative Karim Khan said connected Wednesday that Min Aung Hlaing, main of the subject authorities that took power of the Southeast Asian state successful a coup successful 2021, is liable for crimes against humanity regarding the attraction of the Rohingya minority.

The prosecutor’s bureau has been investigating alleged crimes committed during 2016-17 unit successful the country’s authorities of Rakhine for the past 5 years, it said.

At that time, the Myanmar subject unleashed a brutal crackdown connected Rohingya civilians, sending astatine slightest 700,000 fleeing into neighbouring Bangladesh amid reports of killings, torture, rape and arson.

Military main Min Aung Hlaing “bears transgression work for the crimes against humanity of deportation and persecution of the Rohingya, committed successful Myanmar, and successful portion successful Bangladesh”, the prosecutor’s bureau said.

“My Office alleges that these crimes were committed betwixt 25 August 2017 and 31 December 2017 by the equipped forces of Myanmar, the Tatmadaw, supported by the nationalist police, the borderline defender police, arsenic good arsenic non-Rohingya civilians,” Khan’s connection said.

The enactment of the ICC seeks to vindicate the resilience of the chiefly Muslim number assemblage of Rohingya – more than a cardinal of whom were forcibly displaced by subject enactment – and “their anticipation successful the powerfulness of the law”, the authoritative added.

#ICC Prosecutor @KarimKhanQC addresses the Rohingya assemblage connected the exertion for a warrant of apprehension successful the concern successful #Bangladesh/#Myanmar ⤵️https://t.co/OyQHr9q29r pic.twitter.com/vYSJdSNQKe

— Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) November 27, 2024

The judges astatine the ICC volition present find whether the exertion tin warrant an apprehension order. The process could instrumentality respective months.

Myanmar’s subject authorities has not commented connected the determination yet.

Turmoil has been gathering successful Myanmar ever since the coup. Armed factions have fought the subject regime and person gradually scored victories, particularly successful areas adjacent the borderline with China.

That has stirred hostility with Beijing, a large arms supplier to the authorities and Myanmar’s biggest commercialized partner. Analysts enactment that China besides maintains ties with the taste equipped groups which clasp territory on the border.

Earlier this month, Min Aung Hlaing embarked connected his archetypal sojourn to China since seizing power, with Beijing reportedly unhappy with his nonaccomplishment to guarantee stableness and halt criminality.

United Nations investigators said the subject run against the Rohingya, which progressive wide killings, rapes and destruction, was carried retired with “genocidal intent”. Myanmar rejects the charges.

More to follow

This was the archetypal exertion for an apprehension warrant against a high-level Myanmar authoritative issued by the ICC. The prosecutor, who was speaking from a exile campy successful Bangladesh, promised “more volition follow”.

“In doing so, we volition beryllium demonstrating, unneurotic with each of our partners, that the Rohingya person not been forgotten. That they, similar each radical astir the world, are entitled to the extortion of the law,” the British-born barrister said.

In 2022, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest tribunal of the UN, precocious a abstracted lawsuit against Myanmar, brought by Gambia, that investigates work for genocide against the Rohingya.

Five European powers and Canada past twelvemonth joined the ICJ lawsuit against Myanmar, arguing they question to “make a publication to clarifying and combating genocide”.

The petition for an apprehension warrant connected Wednesday comes soon aft the ICC issued planetary apprehension warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, six months aft the authoritative sought them.