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Brutal anti-drug war Ex-President of the Philippines arrested at Manila airport

dpa

11.3.2025 - 05:26

Former President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte during a speech in Hong Kong on Sunday. He was arrested upon his arrival in Manila.
Former President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte during a speech in Hong Kong on Sunday. He was arrested upon his arrival in Manila.
Picture: Keystone/AP Photo/Vernon Yuen

Rodrigo Duterte declared a brutal anti-drug war in the Philippines. Thousands were killed, the International Criminal Court investigated. Now the ex-president has been arrested.

DPA

11.03.2025, 05:26

11.03.2025, 06:17

No time? blue News summarizes for you

  • Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has been arrested in Manila in connection with an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
  • Duterte had returned from his trip to Hong Kong, which had initially triggered speculation that he could evade a possible arrest warrant from the ICC.
  • He is accused of crimes against humanity.
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Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has been arrested for alleged crimes against humanity. An Interpol arrest warrant had been issued against him by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, according to the president's office in the Southeast Asian country. The 79-year-old was arrested by Philippine police after arriving from Hong Kong at the international airport in the capital Manila.

A video shown on television is said to show the moment of his arrest on an airplane. In it, Duterte can allegedly be heard shouting at the police officers: "You'll have to kill me." A second video appears to show him with a walking stick at the airport accompanied by police.

Duterte was in power from 2016 to 2022 and remains controversial to this day, mainly due to his brutal war on drug criminals. According to the police, thousands of people were killed during his time in office during operations in the drug milieu. However, human rights activists are convinced that the true figure is much higher. In 2018, the International Criminal Court opened investigations into alleged murder offences in the course of the state-organized anti-drug war.

"This country is going to hell"Philippine vice president publicly threatens her boss with murder

Duterte's daughter Sara is currently vice president under his successor, the dictator's son Ferdinand Marcos Jr. She is the subject of impeachment proceedings, partly due to a death threat against the current head of state.