This is an unfolding situation. We describe what has been documented, by whom and when.

Rohingya: expulsion, statelessness and exile

Statelessness since 1982; mass expulsion in 2017

The UN Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar (2018) concluded there was sufficient information to warrant the investigation and prosecution of senior Myanmar military officials for genocide. The case brought by The Gambia at the International Court of Justice is ongoing; merits hearings took place in January 2026.

The pressures

The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar (2018) concluded there was sufficient information to warrant the investigation and prosecution of senior Myanmar military officials for genocide, for a competent court to determine liability (A/HRC/39/64, paras 85–87). Myanmar denied genocide. The ICJ ordered provisional measures on 23 January 2020 and rejected Myanmar's preliminary objections on 22 July 2022. Merits hearings ran from 12 to 29 January 2026; Myanmar described its operations as counter-terrorism without genocidal intent. As recorded in the supplied brief on 25 October 2026, no merits judgment had been delivered; this status needs checking on publication day.

Pushed out

Mass expulsion in 2017 forced residents into exile; statelessness restricted return.

UN Fact-Finding Mission (2018); UNHCR, Rohingya Crisis Report (2024).

Written out

The mission documented restrictions on collective worship and the burning of schools, marketplaces and mosques during the destruction of at least 392 villages in 2017. It did not establish the separate claim that Islamic education was banned.

UN Fact-Finding Mission, A/HRC/39/64 (12 September 2018), paras 28 and 42.

Squeezed out

Loss of homes and livelihoods and restrictions in displacement limited economic autonomy.

UNHCR (2024); Fortify Rights, Statelessness Report (2023).

Worn down

Violence, expulsion and uncertainty about return affected community life.

UN Fact-Finding Mission (2018); UNHCR (2024).

Silenced

The mission described educated and influential people being targeted in arrests after the 2016 operations. Mohib Ullah, chair of ARSPH, was killed by unidentified gunmen in Kutupalong camp on 29 September 2021. His killing was not attributed to the Myanmar state. Bangladesh's 2019 camp internet shutdown was a separate policy.

UN Fact-Finding Mission, A/HRC/39/64 (12 September 2018), para 45; Front Line Defenders (30 September 2021); OHCHR (1 October 2021); HRW (13 September 2019).

What people are doing

  • Mohib Ullah was one of the organisers of the Kutupalong rally on 25 August 2019, which demanded citizenship and a safe return.
  • UNICEF and partners launched the Myanmar Curriculum Pilot in November 2021 following Bangladesh's January 2020 decision. It reached its first 10,000 children by May 2022. This was a UN and government programme, not evidence of Rohingya self-organising.

How to help, safely

How to help safely: give through established humanitarian organisations already working there, and check their registration (in the UK, on the Charity Commission register). Share information only from named, verified sources. Never share photos, names or locations that could identify people on the ground.

Sources

Sources: UN Fact-Finding Mission A/HRC/39/64 (12 September 2018), Front Line Defenders (30 September 2021), Al Jazeera (25 August 2019), UNICEF (1 May 2022), HRW (13 September 2019), ICJ case 178 and JURIST (17 January 2026). The legal status is dated to the supplied brief and must be rechecked before publication.