A Most Wanted Man

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The International Criminal Court (ICC) is seeking an arrest warrant for Myanmar’s military leader Min Aung Hlaing, the court said Wednesday, over his role in the 2017 crackdown on the Muslim Rohingya minority that displaced more than 700,000 people, the Washington Post reported.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said there are “reasonable grounds to believe” that Hlaing “bears criminal responsibility for the crimes against humanity of deportation and persecution of the Rohingya committed in Myanmar and parts of Bangladesh.”

Some of those crimes, prosecutors say, include massacres, rape, and arson.

Although Myanmar is not an ICC member, the court ruled it has jurisdiction because the crimes were partially committed in neighboring Bangladesh, which is a member of the international tribunal.

The junta leader has also faced accusations of crimes against humanity since he led a 2021 military coup that deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking widespread protests that evolved into armed resistance. Security forces under his command have allegedly killed thousands of civilians, while his regime has lost significant ground to ethnic armed groups and pro-democracy militias on multiple fronts.

Human rights groups and Rohingya advocates welcomed the move as an important symbolic step, emphasizing that years of impunity for the military have emboldened further atrocities.

However, analyst Richard Horsey from the International Crisis Group noted that Hlaing is unlikely to alter his actions due to the warrant, given his resistance to international pressure.

The ICC’s statements came two days after one of Myanmar’s main rebel groups announced on Monday its willingness to hold talks with the military following a year-long offensive in northern Shan State, Reuters reported.

On Monday, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) expressed its desire for negotiations to ease civilian suffering caused by military airstrikes.

The TNLA is part of an alliance comprised of the Arakan Army and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army that launched a coordinated offensive last year called “Operation 1027.” The offensive has become the junta’s biggest challenge and resulted in the loss of a number of towns and military bases.

The TNLA’s proposal comes as neighboring China – which has been involved in mediation talks between rebels and the military government – is pressuring the armed groups to engage in dialogue with Myanmar’s junta.

The rebel alliance reached a ceasefire with the army in January following China-brokered talks, but that agreement collapsed in June.