Ex-Philippines president Duterte’s trial begins at ICC
A former president of Philippines Rodrigo Duterte has appeared before the International Criminal Court over accusation of drug war that killed several peoples in his country.
Mr Duterte, arrested and transfered to the court in March 2025, dressed in a dark suit and white shirt on Wednesday and sat before the court as the proceedings opened at the court in Hague.
The 81-year-old former president denied the charges against him, adding that he acted in self-defence as part of his anti-drug offensive.
“Decades of murdering his own people, murdering the children of the Philippines, and he claims that he did it all for his country. He doesn’t deny it. His promise was to kill thousand, and he did, ” said Julian Nicholls, summing up for the prosecution after the hearing.
The ex-president appeared by video link when he was first brought to the court, but had since skipped hearings, with his defence team claiming he was too ill.
The former president faces three count charges against humanity with prosecutors alleging his involvement in at least 76 murders between 2013 and 2018 during his war against drug users and sellers.
He is the first Asian former head of state to face trial at the ICC.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
States
Independence: NBA urges Nigerians to expect better future
The NBA said that ordinary Nigerians should be deriving benefit from the subsidy removal rather than hardship.
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
Hot news Home top
Spain’s transport minister resigns six days after train collision kills 68
Mr Puente announced his resignation in Congress when he appeared to speak about the deadly train crash that occurred last Wednesday.
Health
FG targets 20% increase in eye care workforce by 2030
Mr Salako said Nigeria would mobilise domestic resources and strengthen collaboration with Commonwealth and international partners to achieve the targets.
World
CHOGM 2026: Commonwealth foreign ministers seek stronger cooperation
The meeting was chaired by Everly Paul Chet Greene, Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Immigration.
Hot news Home top
ADC, NDC accuse APC of political intimidation, violence in Edo
The ADC and NDC called for an immediate end to alleged political intimidation, violence, and attacks against opposition parties in Edo.
Abuja
Alleged Cyberbullying: SSS urges court to reject Sowore’s request to subpoena lead lawyer as witness
The SSS, through its lawyer, Kenneth Cyril-Ita, told Justice Mohammed Umar that Mr Sowore’s request was a ploy to delay his trial.
Economy
MAN unveils programme to reduce manufacturers’ energy costs
Mr Tegbe reiterated the government’s commitment to collaborating with manufacturers to address their electricity challenges.
