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Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte has been arrested on a warrant from the International Criminal Court for allegedly committing crimes against humanity.
Mr Duterte was taken into custody in Manila on Tuesday after the Interpol warrant was served upon his return from a trip to Hong Kong, the presidential palace said in a statement.
Mr Duterte, 79, a divisive figure who led the Philippines from June 2016 to June 2022, was being investigated by the ICC over allegations that his administration oversaw the execution of around 4,000 people during anti-drug operations in the country.
Most of those killed were poor Filipinos living in urban areas.
Human rights groups have long claimed that the actual number of dead could be far higher than reported.
President Ferdinand Marcos’ office said the Philippine National Police executed the arrest warrant and escorted Mr Duterte from the airport. “The former president and his entourage are in good health and have been examined by government doctors,” it said.
“They have assured him that he is in good condition. The PNP officers who executed the warrant were confirmed to be wearing body cameras.”
Mr Duterte’s surprise arrest sparked chaos at the Ninoy Aquino international airport as his aides and lawyers protested the execution of the warrant.
His doctor and lawyers were reportedly prevented from going near him after he was taken into police custody. “This is a violation of his constitutional right,” Senator Bong Go, an ally of Mr Duterte, told reporters.
Salvador Panelo, Mr Duterte’s legal aide, said the Interpol arrest warrant came from “a spurious source” as the ICC had no jurisdiction in the country.
The ICC has maintained it has jurisdiction to prosecute alleged crimes committed in the Philippines before the country withdrew as a member of the international court.
Mr Duterte won the presidency by a wide margin in 2016 after pledging to eradicate illegal drugs and crime with an unprecedented crackdown. Polls at the time showed broad support for him and for the crackdown despite allegations of summary killings resulting from weak intelligence and coverups by police.
Mr Duterte has denied the allegations and said the drugs problem was a national security issue.
The ICC launched an investigation against Mr Duterte in 2011 when he was still mayor of the southern city of Davao. Mr Duterte withdrew from the Rome Statute, which established the ICC, in 2019 in a move that was condemned as an attempt by the then president to evade accountability.
Mr Duterte’s administration sought to halt the ICC investigation in 2021, claiming Philippine authorities were handling the matter. However, the ICC ruled in 2023 that the investigation could proceed, rejecting Mr Duterte’s objections.
The Hague court intervenes when nations fail to prosecute serious crimes like genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
President Marcos decided not to rejoin the global court when he succeeded Mr Duterte in 2022. His administration, however, said it would cooperate if the ICC asked Interpol to take Mr Duterte into custody under a Red Notice, a request for law enforcement agencies worldwide to find and temporarily arrest a criminal suspect.