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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Duterte team submits new evidence to ICC in drug war case

Duterte team submits new evidence to ICC in drug war case

Published Nov 6, 2025 04:44 pm
Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Photos from the International Criminal Court)
Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Photos from the International Criminal Court)
The defense team of former president Rodrigo Duterte has submitted a new batch of evidence to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with the ongoing crimes against humanity case arising from his administration’s war on drugs.
In a filing dated Nov. 5, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I confirmed receipt of the Defense Second Communication of Disclosure of Evidence submitted by Duterte’s lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman.
According to the court, the defense turned over 13 items of evidence on Nov. 3 to both the Office of the Prosecutor and the Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV).
The contents of the materials were not disclosed publicly. They are listed in a confidential annex accessible only to the defense, prosecution, and OPCV, in accordance with ICC rules governing the exchange of evidence.
The submission forms part of the pre-trial process in The Hague, where judges are reviewing evidence to determine whether there is sufficient basis to proceed to trial for alleged extrajudicial killings committed between 2016 and 2019.
This marks the second formal disclosure by Duterte’s defense since proceedings resumed earlier this year following his transfer to the ICC Detention Centre in the Netherlands.
The first batch of materials was submitted in September, which the defense said aimed to “contextualize” Duterte’s anti-drug campaign as a lawful national security measure rather than a policy of state-sponsored killings.
Prosecutors, however, have maintained that the former president’s drug war constituted a systematic and widespread attack against civilians, primarily targeting the poor, and that the operations were carried out with the encouragement of senior officials.
In October, the Pre-Trial Chamber ordered both the defense and prosecution to complete evidence disclosure and witness summaries before year-end, ahead of the confirmation of charges hearing expected in early 2026.
The ICC investigation covers the period from July 1, 2016, to March 16, 2019, when the Philippines was still a member of the Rome Statute, before its withdrawal took effect.

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