Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s legal team asks the International Criminal Court (ICC) to remove eight additional killing incidents from prosecutors’ trial materials. In a motion filed before Trial Chamber III, the defense argues the incidents were added to the trial brief in a way that improperly expands the crimes against humanity charges that the court already confirmed for trial.
If the ICC grants the request, the number of alleged killings cited in the case against Duterte would increase from 49 to 57, according to reporting cited by the outlet. Duterte is accused of crimes against humanity linked to killings during his administration’s anti-drug campaign. The defense, led by Peter Haynes, contends that prosecutors’ inclusion of the eight incidents changes the scope of what the trial is meant to cover.
The filings described by the sources focus on procedural and scope issues—whether the ICC can include those additional incidents at this stage—rather than on the merits of individual allegations or the events themselves.
