‘I take responsibility’

Before landing, Duterte released a video statement on his and a close advisor’s Facebook pages, addressing his countrymen.

“I am the one who led our law enforcement and military. I said that I will protect you and I will be responsible for all of this,” Duterte, 79, said.

“I have been telling the police, the military, that it was my job and I am responsible,” he added, making him the first Asian former head of state to face charges at the ICC.

The ICC, based in The Hague, believes there are “reasonable grounds” to charge Duterte with murder as a crime against humanity, as an “indirect co-perpetrator” during the anti-drug campaign that rights groups estimate killed tens of thousands.

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