The Supreme Court of the Philippines on Wednesday rejected Senator Ronald dela Rosa’s request to bar authorities from enforcing the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against him.
By a 9-5-1 majority, the court rejected Dela Rosa’s request for a temporary restraining order that would have barred law enforcement from arresting him based solely on the ICC warrant without a domestic court’s authorization. The court reserved its reasons until May 25. Law enforcement authorities may arrest dela Rosa now, but his whereabouts remain unknown following the May 13 shootout in the state’s senate. The government is investigating whether the shooting was staged in order to aid in his escape.
Dela Rosa’s counsel maintained that the ICC has no jurisdiction to issue the warrant because the country officially withdrew from the ICC in 2019. Former president Rodrigo Duterte previously attempted to put forward the same contention at the ICC but failed.
Dela Rosa was the police chief who oversaw former President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign. He is wanted for crimes against humanity due to his role in the campaign, which took the lives of over 12,000 Filipinos. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 2,555 of these killings have been attributed to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC accepted that there were reasonable grounds to believe that an attack targeting the civilian population took place, after having referred to 14 incidents as a sample of alleged conduct of Davao Death Squad (DDS) members and later law enforcement personnel. The chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that dela Rosa made “essential contributions” to the crime against humanity of murder, established in article 7(1)(a) of the Rome Statute. These contributions include using his position as chief to enable and order killings; making public statements promoting the killings; providing personnel and weapons; rewarding the killings; encouraging the police to legitimize their killings through false self-defense scenarios; and promising impunity.
Amnesty International recently stressed the responsibility of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to ensure dela Rosa’s arrest. Ritz Lee Santos III, executive director of Amnesty International Philippines, discussed the broader importance, stating:
Dela Rosa held a key role in the “war on drugs” under former President Duterte, is a clear flight risk and appears intent on avoiding accountability… The place for Dela Rosa to challenge his case…is in The Hague, in impartial and independent trial proceedings. Political authority must not place anyone above the law. In the interest of justice for victims, survivors, and their families, those alleged to have committed grave crimes must be held to account, no matter how long it takes.
The charges are similar to those against Duterte, who was arrested in March 2025. The UN has documented the “staggering number of unlawful deaths and police killings” during his tenure, calling for all those involved to be held accountable.
