Hello and welcome to the details of Philippine court clears way for ICC arrest of Duterte’s drug war ally and now with the details
Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - A protester with face paint reading ‘Arrest Bato’ looks on during a demonstration to call for the start of the impeachment trial against Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte and the arrest of Philippine Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa outside the Senate of the Philippines in Pasay, Metro Manila on May 18, 2026. — AFP pic
MANILA, May 20 — The Philippine Supreme Court refused today to block the arrest of a fugitive senator wanted by the International Criminal Court over his role in the nation’s deadly drug war.
The interim ruling clears the way for the potential arrest of Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, the former national police chief who was the chief enforcer of ex-president Rodrigo Duterte’s crackdown.
“The Supreme Court, in a vote of 9-5-1, denied the prayer for a temporary restraining order and/or status quo ante order filed by Senator Ronald “Bato” M. Dela Rosa,” a court statement said.
The ICC last week unsealed an arrest warrant against Dela Rosa, accused along with Duterte and other “co-perpetrators” of the crime against humanity of murder.
Government agents tried to arrest Dela Rosa on the same day, but the pro-Duterte senate leadership foiled the attempt and gave him sanctuary.
Dela Rosa later left the senate for an unknown location following a shooting incident between government agents and senate security personnel today that sent senators scurrying for cover in their offices.
Protesters hold a banner during a demonstration to call for the start of the impeachment trial against Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte and the arrest of Philippine Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa outside the Senate of the Philippines in Pasay, Metro Manila on May 18, 2026. — AFP pic
Duterte was arrested last year and is awaiting trial by the ICC in The Hague on charges stemming from the drug crackdown.
“For now, we can say that the warrant of arrest is valid against Senator Bato Dela Rosa,” President Ferdinand Marcos’s spokeswoman Claire Castro told reporters.
It was not immediately known if Manila will now try to enforce the arrest.
Castro said Manila will let Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida interpret and evaluate the Supreme Court ruling.
Vida had said last week that government agents would pause efforts to serve the ICC warrant to allow the Supreme Court to resolve all the issues raised by Dela Rosa.
The judge could not be reached for comment today.
The other unresolved issues are seen as relatively minor, including preventing government agents from arresting any sitting senator without a valid Philippine court order.
The top court said today’s interim ruling only decided on Dela Rosa’s prayers for interim relief, and the 15-member tribunal are yet to decide on the other issues raised by the senator.
Dela Rosa served as national police chief from 2016 to 2018 during the early phase of Duterte’s anti-drug campaign and was elected to two successive six-year terms in the Senate in 2019 after retiring from the force. — AFP
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