Philippine ex-President Duterte appears by video link at initial ICC hearing

Philippine ex-President Duterte appears by video link at initial ICC hearing
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is seen on a screen in the courtroom of the International Criminal Courtin The Hague, Netherlands, on March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Pool)
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Updated 15 March 2025
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Philippine ex-President Duterte appears by video link at initial ICC hearing

Philippine ex-President Duterte appears by video link at initial ICC hearing
  • In the short hearing, Duterte was informed of the crimes he is alleged to have committed, as well as his rights as a defendant
  • Duterte appeared sleepy during the proceedings, closing his eyes frequently for long periods

THE HAGUE: Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte failed to attend in person an initial hearing at the International Criminal Court on Friday, as he faces crimes against humanity charges over his deadly crackdown on narcotics.
The 79-year-old, the first ex-Asian head of state charged by the ICC, followed by videolink during a short hearing to inform him of the crimes he is alleged to have committed, as well as his rights as a defendant.
Sounding frail and wearing a blue suit and tie, he spoke briefly to confirm his name and date of birth. Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc allowed him to follow proceedings in absentia due to his long flight to The Hague.
His lawyer Salvador Medialdea told the court that his client had been “abducted from his country.”
“He was summarily transported to The Hague. To lawyers it’s extrajudicial rendition. For less legal minds, it’s pure and simple kidnapping,” said Medialdea.
The lawyer also said that Duterte was suffering “debilitating medical issue,” adding: “Other than to identify himself, he is not able to contribute to this hearing.”

 

Duterte appeared sleepy during the proceedings, closing his eyes frequently for long periods.
But Motoc told Duterte: “The court doctor was of the opinion that you were fully mentally aware and fit.”
She set a date of September 23 for the next stage of the process: a hearing to confirm the charges.
Duterte stands accused of the crime against humanity of murder over his years-long campaign against drug users and dealers that rights groups said killed thousands.
In the prosecutor’s application for his arrest, he said Duterte’s alleged crimes were “part of a widespread and systematic attack directed against the civilian population in the Philippines.”
“Potentially tens of thousands of killings were perpetrated,” the prosecutor alleged of the campaign that targeted mostly poor men, often without proof they were linked to drugs.
Victims’ families have welcomed the trial as a chance for justice, while Duterte supporters believe he was “kidnapped” and sent to The Hague amid a spectacular fall-out with the ruling Marcos family.
In Manila, Jane Lee, whose husband was killed in the drug war, said she was barely able to contain her rage at the sight of the former president.
“When I saw him, I was so angry I could barely control myself,” the 42-year-old said at a public viewing of the ICC proceedings.

According to international law experts, his whirlwind arrest and surrender offers a welcome boon to the embattled ICC, which is being attacked from all sides and sanctioned by the United States.
“I see the arrest and handing over of Duterte as a gift at an important moment in time,” Willem van Genugten, Professor of International Law at Tilburg University in The Netherlands, told AFP.
Earlier on Friday, the former leader’s daughter Sara Duterte, vice president of the Philippines, told AFP she had submitted a last-minute bid to have the hearing moved.

 

She later revealed that she had visited her father for an hour in the detention center and that he was “in good spirits, well looked-after” and “well rested,” his main complaint being about the food.
“He told me that all he does is sleep and watch TV... (he said that) my only complaint is that I really miss Philippine food,” Sara Duterte told reporters at a chaotic press conference surrounded by dozens of baying supporters.
Duterte backers had gathered outside the hulking glass building in the Hague shouting “bring him home.”
But Ecel Sandalo, an anti-Duterte demonstrator, told AFP the fact that the former president was on trial had given him “hope that despite all the injustices in the world, there are still small victories that we can celebrate.”
As he landed in The Hague, the former leader appeared to accept responsibility for his actions, saying in a Facebook video: “I have been telling the police, the military, that it was my job and I am responsible.”
In his application for arrest, the prosecutor quoted from some of Duterte’s pronouncements when he was running for president.
He is cited as saying the number of criminal suspects killed “will become 100,000... I will kill all of you” and the fish in Manila Bay “will become fat because that’s where I will throw you.”
At the confirming of charges hearing, a suspect can challenge the prosecutor’s evidence.
Only after that will the court decide whether to press ahead with a trial, a process that could take several months or even years.
 


Recovering pope expected to delight crowds at Easter Sunday mass

Recovering pope expected to delight crowds at Easter Sunday mass
Updated 5 sec ago
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Recovering pope expected to delight crowds at Easter Sunday mass

Recovering pope expected to delight crowds at Easter Sunday mass
  • Catholic faithful gathered Easter Sunday in St. Peter’s Square on the holiest day of the Christian calendar, hoping Pope Francis would make an appearance despite his frail health that has kept him from

VATICAN CITY: Catholic faithful gathered Easter Sunday in St. Peter’s Square on the holiest day of the Christian calendar, hoping Pope Francis would make an appearance despite his frail health that has kept him from most Holy Week events.
The 88-year-old pontiff traditionally delivers his “Urbi et Orbi” benediction from a balcony overlooking the square following mass to mark the holiday.
But given his delicate health following treatment for pneumonia, it is still unknown whether the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics will be present, and in what capacity.
The Holy See’s press service has said the pope hopes to attend but has not confirmed his participation, insisting it depends on his health.
That did not stop crowds of faithful from gathering Sunday under hazy skies in the sprawling plaza decorated with brightly-colored tulips in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Jesuit pope.
Marie Manda, 59, from Cameroon, was one of those thinking positive.
“Of course we hope to see the pope but if he’s not here and he’s still suffering we’ll see his representative,” she told AFP.
“But we want to see the pope, even sick we want to see him!“
Indian tourist Rajesh Kumar, 40, however, said he had no idea it was Easter when he booked his holiday with his wife.
“After coming here we realized there is a festival going on, the pope is going to give a speech, so we just entered and we are ready for it,” he said.
Francis was released from hospital on March 23, after five weeks of treatment for pneumonia, from which he nearly died.
His voice remains weak, despite improvements in his breathing. In the last week, Francis has appeared in public twice without the nasal cannula through which he has been receiving oxygen.
He could delegate the reading of his Easter text — usually a reflection on conflicts and crises around the world — to someone else.
For the first time since becoming pope in 2013, Francis has missed the majority of Holy Week events, such as Friday’s Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum and Saturday’s Easter vigil at Saint Peter’s Basilica, where he delegated his duties to cardinals.
He did, however, make a brief appearance inside the basilica Saturday, where he prayed and gave candies to some children among the visitors.
Some 300 cardinals, bishops and priests will be present at Sunday’s Easter mass.
Organizers expect even bigger crowds than usual due to the Jubilee, a “Holy Year” in the Catholic Church which comes around once every quarter of a century and attracts thousands of pilgrims to the Eternal City.


The weekend was also noteworthy for the presence of US Vice President JD Vance in Rome.
He held talks on Saturday with the Vatican’s secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states.
That came just two months after a spat between Francis and the administration of US President Donald Trump over its anti-migrant policies.
Neither the Vatican nor the vice president’s office have commented on any possible meeting between Francis and Vance, and it was unknown whether the vice president planned to attend Sunday mass.
Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the college of cardinals, presided over Saturday night’s solemn Easter vigil in place of Francis.
Francis performed one official engagement this Holy Week, visiting a jail in Rome, but he did not perform the traditional foot-washing ritual, which seeks to imitate Jesus Christ’s washing of his disciples’ feet.
Asked by a journalist after his visit what he felt about this Easter week in his current condition, the pope replied: “I am living it as best I can.”
This year’s Easter is unusual as it falls on the same weekend in both the Catholic and Protestant branches of Christianity, which follow the Gregorian calendar, and the Orthodox branch, which uses the Julian calendar.


German police launch manhunt after 2 people shot dead

German police launch manhunt after 2 people shot dead
Armed police stand guard at the compound of the court builing in Celle, northern Germany (AFP)
Updated 20 April 2025
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German police launch manhunt after 2 people shot dead

German police launch manhunt after 2 people shot dead
  • There was no information yet about the "circumstances, or the motive of the perpetrators", they said.

BERLIN: A large police operation was under way in Germany on Sunday to find one or more shooters who killed two men the day before in the center of the country, police said.
The bodies of the two victims, both with gunshot wounds, were found in front of a residential address in Bad Nauheim, a town north of Frankfurt, on Saturday afternoon, Giessen city police said.
“A big force deployment” of police from uniformed, plain clothes and special forces branches have fanned out, backed by a helicopter, to find the perpetrator or perpetrators, it said.
“The current understanding is that there is no danger for inhabitants or other people,” police said.
There was no information yet about the “circumstances, or the motive of the perpetrators,” they said.
Police and prosecutors have opened an investigation.
Bad Nauheim is 25 kilometers (15 miles) north of Frankfurt and has a population of around 33,000. It was famous for being where Elvis Presley did US military service between 1958 and 1960 and where he met his future wife, Priscilla Presley.


South Korea, US, to hold trade talks this week, Seoul says

South Korea, US, to hold trade talks this week, Seoul says
Updated 20 April 2025
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South Korea, US, to hold trade talks this week, Seoul says

South Korea, US, to hold trade talks this week, Seoul says
  • South Korea hopes to lower the 25% "reciprocal" tariff that President Donald Trump has announced for the country.

SEOUL: South Korea and the United States will hold trade consultations this week in Washington at the suggestion of the United States, Seoul’s trade ministry said on Sunday.
Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok and Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun will meet with Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the sidelines of the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, the ministry said in a statement.
South Korea hopes to lower the 25 percent “reciprocal” tariff that President Donald Trump has announced for the country, which he has since paused along with high tariffs slapped on a string of countries.
Ahn will leave on Wednesday, the statement said. It did not specify the agenda or give other details.


China’s US envoy urges end to trade war, but warns Beijing ready to fight

China’s US envoy urges end to trade war, but warns Beijing ready to fight
China's ambassador to the United States Xie Feng. (AFP)
Updated 20 April 2025
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China’s US envoy urges end to trade war, but warns Beijing ready to fight

China’s US envoy urges end to trade war, but warns Beijing ready to fight
  • The trade war has all but frozen the mammoth trade between the world's two largest economies
  • Trump said on Friday the U.S. is having good conversations privately with China amid the two countries' trade war.

DUBAI: China’s ambassador to the United States, Xie Feng, has urged Washington to seek common ground with Beijing and pursue peaceful coexistence while warning that China stood ready to retaliate in the escalating trade war.
Speaking at a public event in Washington on Saturday, details of which were posted on the Chinese embassy’s web site, Xie said tariffs would devastate the global economy and drew a parallel between the Great Depression and tariffs imposed by the US in 1930.
Referring to concepts in traditional Chinese medicine like the need to balance the opposing forces of yin and yang, Xie said harmony should guide relations between the world’s two largest economies.
“A good traditional Chinese medicine recipe usually combines many different ingredients which reinforce one another and creates the best medical effect,” he said.
“Likewise, the earth is big enough to accommodate both China and the US,” he said. “We should pursue peaceful coexistence rather than collide head-on, and help each other succeed rather than get caught in a lose-lose scenario.”
The trade war has all but frozen the mammoth trade between the world’s two largest economies with tariffs over 100 percent in each direction and a suite of trade, investment and cultural restrictions.
China’s top shipbuilding association on Saturday attacked a US plan to apply port fees on China-linked ships.
While Japan, Taiwan and others are already in talks or preparing to negotiate with Washington over President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, there is currently no high-level dialogue planned with China.
Trump said on Friday the US is having good conversations privately with China amid the two countries’ trade war.
“By the way, we have nice conversations going with China,” he told reporters at the White House. “It’s, like, really very good.” He did not offer additional details.
China has said the US should show respect before any talks can take place.
Xie said China opposed the trade war and would retaliate to any country imposing tariffs on it.


Putin attends Orthodox Easter service after declaring ceasefire in Ukraine

Putin attends Orthodox Easter service after declaring ceasefire in Ukraine
Updated 20 April 2025
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Putin attends Orthodox Easter service after declaring ceasefire in Ukraine

Putin attends Orthodox Easter service after declaring ceasefire in Ukraine
  • The traditionally sung service starts late on a Saturday and lasts into the early hours of Sunday
  • Zelensky says Russian army ‘trying to create impression’ of Easter ceasefire

President Vladimir Putin and Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin joined other worshippers for an Easter service led by the head of Russia’s Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, a faithful backer of the Russian leader and an advocate for the war in Ukraine.
Hours after declaring a unilateral Easter ceasefire that Kyiv said was just words as fighting continued, Putin and Sobyanin stood in Moscow’s main church, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, while Kirill led a procession, video of the service showed.
Holding a lit thin red candle and donning a dark suit, white shirt and a red tie as in years past, the Russian leader crossed himself several times when Kirill announced “Christ is risen.”
The traditionally sung service starts late on a Saturday and lasts into the early hours of Sunday.
For Putin, the Orthodox faith is central to his world view and he always attends services during major church holidays. For Orthodox Russians, Easter is the most important religious holiday.
At the service, Krill called for “lasting and just peace can be established in the vast expanses of historical Rus,” RIA state news agency reported, in what was a reference to a medieval territory that encompassed parts of what is now Ukraine, Belarus and Russia. “How wonderfully it was said, do not do evil to another and do not treat others as you would not want them to treat you,” TASS agency cited Kirill as saying.
“If people adhered to this holiday commandment, then life would be completely different: family and social life and — let me say this — inter-governmental.”
Kirill has strongly backed the war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year. Thousands have been killed, the vast majority of them Ukrainians, and millions driven from their homes since Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Zelensky says Russian army ‘trying to create impression’ of Easter ceasefire

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that the Russian army is making a pretense of an Easter ceasefire declared by President Vladimir Putin, continuing overnight attempts to inflict front-line losses on Ukraine.
“In general, as of Easter morning, we can say that the Russian army is trying to create a general impression of a ceasefire, but in some places it does not abandon individual attempts to advance and inflict losses on Ukraine,” Zelensky said in a post on social media.

Early on Sunday, Ukrainian forces reported 59 instances of shelling and five assault attempts along the front line, he said.
“Russia must fully comply with the conditions of silence,” Zelensky said.
He reiterated that Kyiv was willing to extend the ceasefire for 30 days but said that if Russia kept fighting on Sunday, so would Ukraine.
“Ukraine will continue to act in a mirror manner,” he said.