ICC Unseals Arrest Warrant for Sen. Dela Rosa

The International Criminal Court unsealed an arrest warrant on Monday for Philippine Senator Ronald Marapon dela Rosa, charging the former national police chief with the crime against humanity of murder for at least 32 deaths linked to the anti-drug campaign under ex-President Rodrigo Duterte.

The warrant, issued confidentially in November, covers killings allegedly committed between July 2016 and the end of April 2018. ICC judges reviewed evidence from prosecutors and determined dela Rosa made essential contributions to the crimes as an indirect co-perpetrator. Dela Rosa, a close Duterte ally who led the national police during the campaign's early phase, has denied authorizing extrajudicial killings. He and other officials maintain the suspects were shot after resisting arrest and threatening officers. Duterte publicly threatened drug suspects with death on multiple occasions while in office.

On the same day the warrant became public, dela Rosa appeared unexpectedly at the Philippine Senate in Manila following a summons related to a domestic investigation into the killings. Officers from the National Bureau of Investigation attempted to approach him upon arrival, but he entered...