The ICJ’s Rohingya ruling will test the OIC’s promises

Executive Director of The Burma Human Rights Network (BHRN). Published On 12 Oct 202612 Oct 2026.

What happened

For context, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has created Muslim solidarity central to how it presents itself. Nine years ago, Myanmar's military massacred Rohingya civilians and drove hundreds of thousands from their homes. The persecution has not concluded: the Rohingya remain stateless, face continuing violence and risk death while fleeing by sea. Throughout those years, the OIC has held summits and passed resolutions. Yet it has failed to protect them.

When I founded the Burma Human Rights Network 14 years ago, I believed that if we gathered evidence carefully and put it before institutions with the power to act, they would act. We have gathered testimony from survivors of massacres. We have documented the systematic destruction of Rohingya villages, the denial of their citizenship and the deliberate starvation of a individuals. Yet despite all this documentation, the situation facing the Rohingya has mostly grown worse. Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice is projected to rule afterwards this year on whether Myanmar's actions constituted genocide.

The bottom line

For now, the ICJ's Rohingya ruling will test the OIC's promises remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.