The Burmese Armed Forces launched a fierce offensive against the country's Rohingya Muslim population in 2017, expelling some 740,000 to neighboring Bangladesh.
On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken must officially announce the government's decision to consider this repression as genocide.
Here are the key dates of the crisis:
- Military operations -
On August 25, 2017, Rohingya militants organize coordinated attacks on police stations in Rakhine State, Burma, killing at least a dozen officers.
The military retaliates with operations in Rohingya villages, allegedly to expel insurgents.
It is reported that 400 rebels were killed, but opponents claim that most of those killed are civilians.
The UN claims that at least 1,000 people lost their lives in the first two weeks of military operations.
- Exodus of refugees -
As of 5 September, more than 120,000 Rohingya had fled to Bangladesh, overflowing their ill-equipped refugee camps.
There are already at least 200,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh from previous waves of violence.
- Suu Kyi breaks the silence -
International anger escalates against Burma. Soldiers are accused of razing Rohingya homes and some world leaders claim “ethnic cleansing”.
In her first statement on the crisis, Burma's civilian leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, pledges on September 19 to hold human rights violators to account, but refuses to blame the military.
- Possible “genocide” -
On 23 November, Bangladesh and Burma agree to start repatriating refugees.
But the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says that the necessary conditions for their safe return are not in place and the process is halted.
The head of human rights of the UN, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, warns on 5 December of possible “elements of genocide” and calls for an international investigation.
- Courts and sanctions -
On August 25, 2018, tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees organize protests to commemorate the first anniversary of their exodus.
UN investigators call for the Burmese Army chief and five other senior military commanders to be prosecuted for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
In November, an attempt to repatriate 2,260 Rohingya failed, who refused to leave without guarantees of their safety.
- Detained reporters -
On September 3, two journalists from the Reuters agency, accused of violating Burma's State Secrets Act by reporting on a Rohingya massacre, are jailed for seven years.
They would spend more than 500 days behind bars before being released thanks to a presidential pardon.
- United States sanctions -
On July 16, 2019, Washington announced sanctions against the chief of the Burmese Army and three other senior military officials.
Some 3,500 Rohingya refugees are allowed to return home, but none show up for the trip on August 22.
- Legal challenges increase -
On November 11, the Gambia files a lawsuit with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Burma of genocide for its treatment of the Rohingya.
Three days later, the International Criminal Court (ICC), based in The Hague, gives the green light to a full investigation into the persecution of the Rohingya.
In the same week, a third case is brought by rights groups in Argentina under the principle of universal jurisdiction.
- Suu Kyi in court -
On December 10, the Gambia presents its case to the ICJ with Suu Kyi personally leading the defense of Burma.
It refutes the allegations of genocide and denies the “misleading and incomplete” allegations and insisting that Burma is dealing with an “internal armed conflict”.
He admits that the military may have deployed excessive use of force.
- Judgment of the court -
In its judgment of January 23, 2020, the ICJ orders Burma to take urgent action to prevent the alleged genocide and to report within four months.
- Without jurisdiction -
In February 2021, Burma's legal team — except Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest following the military coup — argues that the court has no jurisdiction over the case and must dismiss it before moving to substantive hearings.
ICJ judges must now decide whether the court has jurisdiction to proceed.
- The US considers genocide -
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is due to announce on Monday, March 21, the official decision to describe the repression as genocide in a speech given at the Holocaust Museum in Washington.
The measure could be accompanied by new sanctions and restrictions on aid, among other sanctions against an already isolated military junta, according to press reports.
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