Shots were fired inside the Philippine Senate during an attempt by security forces to arrest Senator Ronald dela Rosa on an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant.
The report was published by the Associated Press, which said it was still unclear who opened fire during the incident. There were also no immediate reports of casualties.
Senator Ronald dela Rosa was in the Senate at the time, alongside colleagues who were supporting him. Law enforcement officers attempted to detain the senator with the aim of later transferring him to the International Criminal Court.
Senate President Alan Cayetano briefly appeared before journalists and confirmed that the chamber’s security services had informed him about the shooting. Without providing further details, he quickly left, saying the situation was highly tense.
According to the report, the ICC issued a warrant for the arrest of Ronald dela Rosa on May 12. He is a former national police chief and was the first head of President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug campaign, which led to thousands of deaths, mostly of suspected drug dealers.
Under warrants issued as early as November, the senator is accused of crimes against humanity, including the killing of at least 32 people. The alleged incidents took place between July 2016 and the end of April 2018, during his tenure as police chief under Duterte’s administration.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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