The Philippine Senate is in lockdown with military personnel seen entering the building where a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court had sought refuge. Rounds of gunfire have been heard – it’s not clear who fired the shots. Officials say there have been no casualties.
Senator Ronald Dela Rosa said earlier he believed his arrest was imminent and urged Filipinos to prevent it. His whereabouts are currently unclear.
He is accused by the ICC of killing dozens of people when he was police chief during former president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, in which thousands of alleged dealers were shot and killed. Duterte has been held at The Hague since March 2025.
TV footage showed police commandos in fatigues entering the Senate building in Manila early on Wednesday evening, with anti-riot policemen with shields and helmets surrounding the perimeter.
Protesters outside the Senate demanded Dela Rosa’s detention, calling for him to be sent to stand trial with Duterte.
His lawyers have appealed to the Supreme Court to block his extradition.
The senate building has been locked down since the shots, and senators are holed up inside.
Interior secretary Jonvic Remulla said the president had given “strict instructions” to secure the senators.
He added: “We are not here to arrest Senator Dela Rosa. In fact, we are here to protect him. Let that be clear. I made that clear to his family.”
No one has been arrested for the shooting, Remulla said.
Senate speaker Alan Peter Cayetano asked the public to send “any videos that could help with the investigation”.
Duterte has refused to recognise the ICC proceedings, arguing that during his presidency in 2019 the Philippines had pulled out of the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding agreement.
But last month, judges in the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber rejected that argument on the grounds that the alleged crimes had happened between 2011 and 2019 – while the Philippines was still a member of the ICC – paving the way for Duterte to stand trial.
By BBC News
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