The former president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, has been handed over to the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands, where he faces accusations of crimes against humanity linked to his controversial anti-drug campaign.
Duterte, 79, was arrested in Manila on Tuesday after returning from Hong Kong.
Authorities swiftly placed him on a flight to Rotterdam, complying with an ICC warrant issued by Pre-Trial Chamber I on charges of murder as a crime against humanity.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the ICC confirmed his arrest, stating that Duterte was taken into custody by Philippine officials in accordance with the warrant.
He has since been transferred to a detention facility on the Dutch coast and is expected to appear before an ICC judge in the coming days.
The charges against Duterte stem from allegations that, during his tenure as both president and mayor of Davao, he orchestrated, funded, and armed death squads responsible for extrajudicial killings of suspected drug offenders.
If the case proceeds, he could be the first former Asian leader to stand trial at The Hague.
Outside the ICC headquarters, demonstrators gathered in support of his arrest. Some carried banners demanding justice, while others welcomed the court’s intervention.
“We demand justice and accountability, Rodrigo Duterte is a war criminal!” read one of the banners displayed by protesters.
Among them was Menandro Abanes, who described the arrest as “great news for Filipino people.”
Speaking to Reuters, he expressed gratitude to the ICC, stating, “I’m here to show my appreciation to [the] ICC for doing its job to end impunity.”
Mary-Grace Labasan, another protester, emphasized the contrast between Duterte’s legal process and the fate of his alleged victims.
“He is experiencing the due process of law compared to the victims who were just being shot and killed without any due process,” she told Reuters.
Despite the protests against Duterte, some of his supporters also showed up outside the ICC building.
The ICC launched its investigation into Duterte’s controversial drug war in 2021, scrutinizing thousands of killings carried out under his leadership, first as Davao’s mayor and later as president.
The court’s judges found “reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Duterte is individually responsible for the crime against humanity of murder” as an “indirect co-perpetrator” who oversaw the violent campaign.
During his six-year presidency, official records indicate that 6,200 individuals were killed in anti-drug operations, though human rights organizations estimate the actual death toll to be closer to 30,000.
