The OIC General Secretariat headquarters in Jeddah, pictured during an
The OIC General Secretariat headquarters in Jeddah, pictured during an extraordinary Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in January 2026. Bangladesh made its appeal at the 23rd extraordinary session on 27 August. FADEL SENNA / AFP via Getty Images

Bangladesh has asked the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's member states to put money into a case the organisation brought in its own name.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir called on OIC members to contribute to the voluntary trust fund established to support The Gambia's case before the International Court of Justice concerning atrocities committed against Rohingya by Myanmar, speaking at the 23rd OIC Extraordinary Council of Foreign Ministers in Jeddah on Thursday.

He also urged member states to strengthen international efforts for the safe, dignified and voluntary repatriation of Rohingya to Myanmar.

Kobir welcomed the OIC's newly elected Secretary General, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, assuring him of Bangladesh's full support, and reaffirmed Bangladesh's backing for a two-state solution on Palestine. He also thanked member states for supporting the election of Bangladesh's foreign minister as president of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Why the appeal keeps being made

The Gambia filed at the ICJ in November 2019 on behalf of the OIC, invoking the 1948 Genocide Convention over events in Rakhine State. Bangladesh hosts more than a million Rohingya who fled, including some 740,000 who crossed the border during the 2017 military campaign.

The funding has never matched the ambition. The Gambia's then justice minister, Dawda Jallow, told OIC foreign ministers the case would cost approximately $5 million to pay lawyers and likely more than $10 million to reach a final verdict. The Gambia retained a Washington-based law firm to lead the prosecution.

By late 2020, the OIC's dedicated account had drawn $1.2 million. Jallow said the law firm had received $300,000 for work performed since September 2019 — less than 10% of what it was owed.

Bangladesh disbursed $500,000 that year. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Nigeria were the only other contributors identified by the OIC General Secretariat at the time. Out of 57 members.

The pattern has persisted. Analysis published in 2024 found the allocation of funds marred by irregularities and insufficiency, creating further complications for a case still awaiting judgment.

Bangladesh's position

Dhaka's interest is more direct than that of most OIC members, which is why the appeal comes from Bangladesh rather than from Banjul.

Bangladesh hosts the world's largest single population of forcibly displaced people, concentrated in camps in Cox's Bazar, with no resolution to the repatriation question in sight. Conditions in Myanmar have not improved: the World Bank estimates the Myanmar economy contracted 2.0% in the year to March 2026, with inflation reaching 24.6% in April.

That combination — a stalled legal case, no repatriation pathway and a deteriorating situation in the country of origin — is what makes the funding shortfall consequential rather than procedural.

What to watch

Whether the appeal produces contributions is the first question, and the record suggests scepticism is warranted. Similar calls have been made at OIC ministerial meetings since 2020.

The second is the new secretary general. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed takes office with the case among the files he inherits, and his predecessor's tenure did not resolve the funding gap.

The third is the ICJ timetable. The case has been before the court for nearly seven years without a merits judgment.