ICC Judges Rule Rodrigo Duterte, 81, Fit to Stand Trial; Proceedings Set to Open Nov. 30

The International Criminal Court announced Thursday, Oct. 8, that Rodrigo Duterte is fit to stand trial. The former Philippine president faces crimes against humanity charges tied to the "war on drugs" he waged from 2016 to 2022.

Trial Chamber III based its decision on the findings of an independent Panel of Experts, plus submissions from the parties and participants. "The chamber was satisfied that the accused is able to effectively exercise his fair trial rights in the proceedings," the court said.

The trial opens Nov. 30, 2026.

What the medical panel found

Duterte is 81. His lawyers raised concerns about his fitness on May 25, 2026, and asked for a medical examination. They argued that serious memory loss left him unable to absorb new information or reliably recall the past, and tried to get the case thrown out on those grounds.

The expert panel disagreed, and the court said it did so unanimously. According to the court, the panel found Duterte can understand the charges, understand the purpose and consequences of the proceedings, follow them, and grasp the implications of entering a plea. He can also understand the evidence and instruct his counsel in preparing his defense.

The court's statement, as relayed by the Associated Press, dates the fitness ruling to Sept. 28. Judges also rejected the bid to dismiss the case and denied a request that Duterte be released from custody.

The charges

Duterte faces three counts of crimes against humanity. Prosecutors allege he was involved in at least 76 murders between 2013 and 2018, a period covering his time as mayor of Davao and then as president. The ICC confirmed all three counts on April 23 and committed him to trial.

Prosecutors say police and government hit squads carried out dozens of killings on his orders. They allege the killers were motivated by the promise of money or by a wish to avoid becoming targets themselves.

Duterte denies the charges. He has said he only ordered police to act in self-defense as part of his anti-drug offensive. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

How we got here

Duterte was arrested in the Philippines in March 2025 and flown to the ICC's headquarters in The Hague. He made his initial appearance by video link on March 14, 2025. He appeared in the courtroom in person for the first time on Sept. 16, 2026, after missing several earlier hearings when his lawyers cited health reasons.

He is the first former Asian head of state to be arrested by the ICC.

A disputed death toll

No one agrees on how many people died. The Philippine national police reported more than 6,000 deaths in the crackdown during his presidency. Human rights groups put the figure as high as 30,000.

That gap is not trivial. The charges now before the court cover at least 76 killings, a fraction of even the lowest count.

Human rights organizations also say suspects were often summarily executed without trial. Duterte's defense is that his orders concerned police acting in self-defense. A court will test those competing accounts against evidence.

Victims' families

When Duterte was arrested, relatives of victims welcomed it. Randy delos Santos, whose teenage nephew was shot dead by police in a riverside alley in Caloocan during an anti-drug operation in August 2017, said: "We hope that top police officials and the hundreds of police officers who were involved in the illegal killings should also be placed in custody and punished."

The current case names only Duterte.

What comes next

Duterte will be asked to enter a plea when the trial opens on Nov. 30. That is one of the proceedings the experts said he is capable of understanding.

His lawyers have not announced whether they will challenge the fitness finding further. For now he remains in ICC custody.