500 more Duterte drug war 'victims' seek inclusion in ICC case

The International Criminal Court's (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber  (PTC) 1 has received from its Registry additional applications from parties seeking to be registered as victims in former President Rodrigo Duterte's crimes against humanity case.

In a four-page document dated February 9, the ICC Registry said it has transmitted to the Chamber 227 applications comprising 500 applicants.

On January 28, 2026, the Chamber ordered the Victims Participation and Reparations Section of the Registry to transmit not later than February 9, 2026 any additional applications received within the initial deadline.

On January 26, 2026, the Chamber issued its decision authorizing the participation in the case of a total of 39 victims.

The decision further clarified that the "victims of murders or attempted murders committed from at least November 1, 2011 to June 30, 2016 in Davao (in or around Davao City), and victims of murders or attempted murders committed from at least June 30, 2016 to March 16, 2019 across the Philippines, fall within the scope of the Duterte case."

On February 10, the Chamber also ordered the defense and the prosecution to “file an updated list of evidence by no later than 13 February 2026.”

This was after Duterte’s legal team sought permission from the ICC to add 78 items to its list of evidence “to be relied on during the hearing on the confirmation of charges.”

The confirmation of charges will begin on February 23 and will run until February 27.

The ICC Prosecutor has charged Duterte with 49 incidents of murder and attempted murder during his time as mayor of Davao City and as President of the Philippines, "although the actual scale of victimization during the charged period was significantly greater."

Government records show that around 6,200 drug suspects were killed during the Duterte administration's anti-drug operations. Human rights organizations, however, say that the number may reach 30,000 due to the unreported related killings. —LDF, GMA Integrated News