Gunshots were reported at the Philippine Senate as police and marines moved to arrest Ronald dela Rosa over an ICC warrant.
Gunshots echoed at the Philippine Senate on Wednesday evening, sending journalists scrambling for cover as police and marines moved to arrest a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court.
The incident unfolded shortly after soldiers equipped with rifles and protective gear went up the stairs of the legislative building, according to a report carried by a correspondent who described the chaos as gunfire erupted. It was not immediately clear who fired the shots.
At the center of the operation was Senator Ronald dela Rosa. a former police chief who served under ex-President Rodrigo Duterte and is facing an ICC arrest warrant over alleged crimes against humanity.. Dela Rosa had earlier signaled that he was anticipating being taken into custody. and he urged people to come to the legislature to help prevent him from being detained and transferred for prosecution in The Hague.
In a video posted on Facebook on Wednesday. dela Rosa appealed directly to the public. saying they should not allow another Filipino to be brought to The Hague.. The message came before law enforcement agents gathered outside the Senate building. as Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca said after the video was released.
This was not the first time the senator’s legal situation had been publicly looming. On Tuesday, dela Rosa urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr not to hand him over to the ICC, while arguing that he was ready to face justice in the Philippines instead.
The ICC’s decision that put dela Rosa in the spotlight came after it unsealed an arrest warrant on Monday. with the warrant dated November.. The suspicion is linked to crimes against humanity. allegations that correspond to the cases tied to Duterte. who is accused of the same category of crimes and is awaiting trial in The Hague following his arrest last year.
After law enforcement entered the Senate building on Monday. dela Rosa reappeared in public for the first time since November and has remained under protective custody by the Senate. sources indicated.. During the standoff that led to the Wednesday evening shooting reports. dela Rosa had been hunkered down in his legislative office while fearing arrest.
When asked about the message he wanted to deliver to the President. dela Rosa told reporters that he hoped President Marcos would care for all Filipinos. describing that as the government’s role.. He also insisted he had not sought personal gain. saying he did not enrich himself and that he had worked faithfully. with emotion visible as he spoke.
Dela Rosa also warned of the personal nature of the moment, telling reporters that the President could one day face a situation like his and come to understand what it feels like to be in his position.
The senator is widely associated with Duterte’s campaign when he was the former leader’s top enforcer during the so-called “war on drugs.” During that crackdown. police say more than 6. 000 suspected drug dealers were killed in official operations.. Separately, thousands of drug users were also shot in slum areas, with those deaths blamed on vigilantes or turf wars.
Police have said that those killed during operations had resisted arrest, while rejecting allegations of systematic killings and cover-ups.. Dela Rosa and his allies have denied any wrongdoing connected to illegal killings. placing him at the center of a broader dispute over accountability for the crackdown that became one of Duterte’s most defining political platforms.
Duterte’s “war on drugs” helped propel him to power in 2016, as he campaigned as a hardline figure and promised to kill thousands of drug dealers. During televised speeches, he repeatedly challenged the ICC to pursue him, a posture that later translated into international legal pressure.
At the ICC. Duterte’s defence team has said the former president maintains his innocence and that his tough public rhetoric was aimed at instilling fear among criminals.. That same thread of contesting intent and responsibility now hangs over the arrest effort involving dela Rosa. as the senator faces the ICC’s warrant while insisting he should be tried at home.
The timing of Wednesday’s reported gunfire underscores how tense the moment has become for both law enforcement and the political figure at the heart of the case.. With the senator urging supporters to gather and warning against transfer to The Hague. the operation inside the Senate building has unfolded not only as a legal action but also as a high-stakes domestic political confrontation.
For many Filipinos. the episode revives memories of the crackdown that followed Duterte’s rise. when the country grappled with allegations of extra-legal killings and the state’s own account that operations targeted armed resistance.. The ICC’s involvement adds another layer to that debate by shifting the dispute from national courts to international scrutiny. even as dela Rosa frames his case as one of being brought abroad rather than being held accountable locally.
Philippine Senate Ronald dela Rosa ICC arrest warrant crimes against humanity war on drugs Duterte Marcos Jr