Myanmar has submitted its first report to the International Court of Justice on steps it has taken to prevent the alleged genocide of Rohingya Muslims, the UN's top court said Monday.

The ICJ made a provisional order in January that Myanmar must take "all measures within its power" to stop the alleged genocide of the minority group, and that it must report to the court at regular intervals.

The case was brought by the African state of The Gambia and featured a hearing in December where former civilian leader and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi presented Myanmar's case.

"On 22 May 2020, Myanmar submitted the first report indicated in the ICJ Order on provisional measures of 23 January 2020," the International Court of Justice said in a tweet, without giving further details.

The contents of Myanmar's report, of which a copy is to be sent to The Gambia, however, will remain confidential until its judges decide to make it public, court officials told AFP.

In a unanimous ruling, the ICJ early this year rejected arguments by Nobel Peace laureate Suu Kyi that the extent of crimes against the Rohingya might have been exaggerated, and that it was an internal affair.

The court granted Gambia's application for emergency measures, pending a full legal case that could take years, and said that Rohingya in Myanmar "remain extremely vulnerable".

Myanmar was ordered to report back after four months, and then every six months after that. It was also ordered not to destroy any evidence of crimes against the Rohingya.

© AFP