Philippine senator vows to fight International Criminal Court order to arrest him over killings

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Philippine senator said Tuesday he will fight any attempt to send him to the International Criminal Court for prosecution on an alleged crime against humanity, adding he never condoned extrajudicial killings when he led the country's police force.

On Monday, the global tribunal in The Hague unsealed an arrest warrant for Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, a former national police chief who first enforced then- President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drugs crackdowns in which thousands of mostly petty suspects were killed.

Originally issued in November, the warrant charges dela Rosa with the crime against humanity of murder of “no less than 32 persons” between July 2016 and the end of April 2018 in the Philippines.

“If I have something to answer for, I will face those in our local courts and not before foreigners,” dela Rosa told reporters in the Senate, which took him into “protective custody” Monday when he reappeared after months of absence.

“I will avail of all legal processes,” he said, and pleaded to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.: “Don’t bring me to The Hague.”

After winning the presidency in 2016, Duterte designated dela Rosa, a loyal ally, as head of the national police force, which enforced the brutal campaign against illegal drugs.

Dela Rosa also once headed the police force in the southern city of Davao, where Duterte was a longtime mayor and built a political name for his extra tough approach to crimes.

“My role was to lead the war on drugs, and that war on drugs was not meant to annihilate people,” dela Rosa said when he was asked about the huge death toll.

“When the lives of police officers came under threat, of course they needed to defend themselves,” dela Rosa said.

Duterte’s six-year term ended in mid-2022. He was arrested last year and detained by the ICC in the Netherlands, where he is awaiting trial for alleged crimes against humanity in connection with several killings under his crackdowns.

Duterte withdrew the Philippines in 2019 from the ICC, in a move human rights activists say was aimed at escaping accountability. The court, however, said it retained jurisdiction over crimes committed when the Philippines was still a member.

Asked if the Philippines will enforce the ICC’s arrest warrant against dela Rosa, officials suggested they were ready and could surrender him to the global court’s jurisdiction like Duterte under a Philippine law enacted to address crimes against humanity like genocide.

“We have an obligation that all those who should be held to account should be held responsible,” Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a news briefing.

Dela Rosa cannot invoke a privilege of immunity from arrest while attending formal sessions or staying within the Senate because the crimes he allegedly committed were serious and punishable by a long prison term, Castro said.

Police have deployed nearly 350 law enforcers outside the Senate, sparking concerns from dela Rosa and allied senators, but officials said they were assigned to keep order and not to eventually help arrest the senator.

A supporter of former Senator Ronald dela Rosa and Vice President Sara Duterte gestures as they hold a rally outside the Philippine Senate in Pasay, Philippines on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Policemen secure the perimeter of the Philippine Senate as supporters of Senator Ronald dela Rosa and Vice President Sara Duterte hold rallies in Pasay, Philippines on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Philippine Senator Ronald dela Rosa becomes emotional while talking with other senators before the start of the session at the Philippine Senate in Pasay, Philippines on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Philippine Senator Ronald dela Rosa listens to reporters as he responds to questions about his unsealed ICC warrant of arrest at the Philippine Senate in Pasay, Philippines on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Philippine Senator Ronald dela Rosa speaks to reporters at the Philippine Senate in Pasay, Philippines on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

NEW YORK (AP) — Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale was ejected by umpire Dan Merzel before a pitch was thrown in Sunday’s game against the New York Yankees, a day after being called for a balk that scored a run.

As umpires took the field and walked by the Braves' dugout on the third base side, Sale began barking. Merzel tossed him and Sale said something to crew chief Dan Bellino as the two talked near the dugout rail.

“I was by the bat rack because the game was about to start and I was getting my helmet,” center fielder Michael Harris II said after his 10th-inning single gave Atlanta a 2-1 win. “I didn’t see him talking to him, but I actually seen the motion of him throwing him out. I was kind of confused but then I saw Sale and remember what happened yesterday and I put two and two together."

Sale was called for his third career balk by Merzel during the fifth inning of Saturday’s 5-4 loss. Rookie Spencer Jones scored on the balk after getting an RBI triple and Sale began fiercely yelling at Merzel before manager Walt Weiss continued the argument and was ejected.

“I think he had some words for the umpire from yesterday, but you know what, it’s behind us," Weiss said. “Everyone had their say and we move on.”

Bellino told a pool reporter after Saturday's game that Sale was called for the balk because he did not declare he was going to pitch from the windup. Bellino said Sale declared he was pitching from the windup when he struck out José Caballero but did not do so ahead of the at-bat to Austin Wells.

It was Sale’s fourth career ejection. It was his first since Aug. 3, 2019, when he pitched for Boston and was tossed by Mike Estabrook for arguing balls and strikes during the fourth inning of a 9-2 loss at Yankee Stadium.

Sale allowed three runs and five hits in six innings Saturday for his first loss since June 28. In his third season with the Braves, the veteran left-hander is 12-7 with a 2.20 ERA in 21 starts.

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Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale, right, argues with home plate umpire Dan Merzel, second left, during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)