Rodrigo Duterte crimes against humanity hearing ends as judges consider trial

Protesters, rallying in support of the detention of former Philippine's president Rodrigo Duterte, hold a placard outside of the International Criminal Court in The Hague on February 23, 2026. Photo / Simon Wohlfahrt, AFP

Rodrigo Duterte killed thousands during his anti-drug campaign, an International Criminal Court prosecutor has alleged, as the crimes against humanity hearing against the former Philippines President wrapped up.

His defence team countered that Duterte had murdered no one and that the prosecution’s argument was based on “hearsay” and “conjecture”, falling far short of the bar needed to confirm the charges against him.

“He’s proud of his killings. He wants to be remembered for them,” said Julian Nicholls, summing up for the prosecution.

“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.

“He ran a death squad in Davao (city) that he created. He ran it for over 20 years before he became president. His promise was to kill thousands and he did.”

Throughout the week, a panel of three judges has heard from the prosecution, defence, and victims’ representatives as they weigh whether to proceed to a full trial.

Duterte has not been in the courtroom. The defence says he is too ill to attend. Victims say he does not want to face the loved ones of those he killed.

He faces three counts of crimes against humanity over his so-called “war on drugs” when he was mayor of Davao City and then as president of the Philippines.

The prosecution has put forward 76 cases of alleged murder, which they say is an “emblematic fraction” of those killed, which rights groups say number thousands.

Duterte’s defence lawyer Nicholas Kaufman, summing up his case, said that if his client could be faulted for anything, it was his “inappropriate choice of language”.

“But he murdered nobody,” Kaufman told the court.

He urged the judges not to confirm the charges and to free Duterte to “live out the rest of his days in peace” in the Philippines.

He said that during a visit to explain proceedings to his client, he “lost the desire to follow me within a minute”.

However, he cited the former leader as asking how the prosecutors could prove that he murdered anyone, again denying the charges against him.

Gilbert Andres, a lawyer representing victims, summed up by saying that his clients experienced defence rebuttals “like their murdered loved ones are being murdered again”.

He called on the court to confirm the charges so that the victims can be “reintegrated into their communities”.

Following the hearing, judges will have up to 60 days to issue a written verdict.

They can confirm all of the charges and proceed to trial, throw out some of the charges, or reject the case outright, in which case Duterte would walk free.

- Agence France-Presse