07/02/2026
DUTERTE SEEKS RELEASE, CHALLENGES ICC DETENTION ORDER
Former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to immediately release him from detention, with his legal team warning that continued custody is unjustified and disproportionate due to alleged legal and factual errors by ICC judges.
In a recent filing, lead defense counsel Nicholas Kaufman said the court wrongly ignored new medical evidence showing Duterteβs serious cognitive and physical decline. The defense also accused the tribunal of violating fair trial standards by disregarding its own medical findings.
The appeal is seeking Duterteβs immediate conditional release to a willing ICC member state.