The UN's highest court will decide on Friday whether to throw out a case lodged by The Gambia against military-ruled Myanmar for the alleged genocide of Rohingya Muslims.
The west African nation accused Myanmar at the International Court of Justice in 2019 of breaching the UN genocide convention over a bloody 2017 crackdown.
Hundreds of thousands of minority Rohingya fled the Buddhist-majority South-East Asian country during the operation, bringing with them harrowing reports of murder, rape and arson.
The Hague-based ICJ said in a statement that it will at 1300 GMT "deliver its judgment on the preliminary objections raised by Myanmar".
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Rohingya women and children rest on the sand after making the sea crossing from Bangladesh to Aceh province, Indonesia. Reuters -
A boat carrying Rohingya stranded on Lampanah beach, Aceh province. The UN says the official recorded drowning toll of 350 in 2022 was the 'tip of the iceberg', with many more feared dead. Reuters -
A child drinks after arriving by boat in Indonesia. Many Rohingya are fleeing refugee camps in Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh, where kidnapping, rape and violence have become common. AFP -
Families sit by a fire on a beach on Idaman Island in East Aceh, Indonesia. Despite the risks of crossing the Andaman Sea, the prospect of life in Malaysia and Indonesia attracts thousands. AP -
People smugglers charge about $5,000 for a seat on a vessel from Bangladesh to Indonesia, Thailand or Malaysia. Conditions on board are often grim. AFP -
Rohingya refugees from Myanmar wait for aid at the Kutupalong refugee camp, the largest in the world, in Bangladesh. AFP -
Lifejackets lie in a boat used to ferry Rohingya refugees across the water. AFP -
Indonesian police assist Rohingya refugee children at a beach in Aceh province. AFP -
A health worker helps a Rohingya refugee after she arrived by boat on the coast of Aceh. AFP
Myanmar says the court should dismiss the case on legal grounds while it is still in its preliminary stages, and before it starts dealing with the genocide allegations in full.
It says the ICJ has no jurisdiction because mainly-Muslim Gambia is bringing the case as a proxy of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
Countries are only allowed to file cases at the ICJ, which has ruled on disputes between UN members since just after World War II, as individual states.
The Gambia says it is supported by the 57-member OIC, which groups Muslim nations around the world
Myanmar also argues that the case is inadmissible as the Gambia is not a direct party to the alleged genocide, while Myanmar itself has also opted out of a relevant part of the genocide convention.
Finally, it also says the case should be thrown out as there was no formal dispute at the time the Gambia filed it, which is one of the court's rules.
If the ICJ rules against Myanmar, the case can move ahead to full arguments on the merits of the allegations of mistreatment of Rohingya Muslims.
A final judgment in such a case could take years.
Around 850,000 Rohingya are languishing in camps in neighbouring Bangladesh while another 600,000 Rohingya remain in Myanmar's southwestern Rakhine state.
Myanmar was originally represented at the ICJ by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, but she was ousted as civilian leader in a coup last year and is now in detention.
