Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will face the International Criminal Court (ICC) on February 23 for the confirmation of charges hearing, after judges ruled he is medically and cognitively fit to participate.
Duterte faces three counts of crimes against humanity allegedly committed between November 2011 and March 2019. The charges cover murders carried out by the Davao Death Squad during his time as mayor of Davao City, killings of high-value targets during his presidency, and murders and attempted murders in barangay clearance operations while he was president.
Despite the Philippines’ 2019 withdrawal from the Rome Statute, the ICC maintains jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed while it was still a State Party.
The hearing aims to assess whether sufficient evidence exists to reasonably believe that Duterte committed the alleged crimes. If any of the charges are confirmed, the case will move to a Trial Chamber, which will carry out the next stage of the process: the trial. The Chamber will rule on the confirmation of charges within 60 days after the hearing.
Duterte has officially waived his right to attend the hearings to confirm the charges, even though the ICC has already taken special measures to accommodate his health. In a statement dated February 18, 2026, Duterte justified this by saying that he did not recognize the ICC and that his extradition was a violation of the constitution and a delaying tactic. He also stated that the accusation that he had pursued a “policy of extrajudicial killings” was a lie.
The Chamber set the hearings for Feb. 23, 24, 26 and 27, and ordered hourly breaks with sessions limited to a maximum of three hours each day. The final day will also include a review of his detention.
Joel Butuyan, Gilbert Andres, and Paolina Massidda of the Office of the Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) were appointed by the ICC judges as a single team of legal representatives for admitted “drug war” victims participating in the hearings.
Duterte’s defense team, headed by Nicholas Kaufman, is still contesting the ICC’s decision that found him fit to stand trial. In a request filed on February 2, 2026, he challenged an earlier decision, arguing that the judges made legal and factual mistakes by considering only the independent medical panel’s reports while overlooking medical evidence presented by the defense.
“Mr. Duterte suffers from cognitive impairment affecting multiple domains, including his memory, executive function and visuospatial skills,” said Kaufman.
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber upheld the panel’s findings as credible, stating that Duterte is capable of understanding the charges and exercising his rights, with appropriate support measures provided. Another attempt by the defense to overturn a separate decision regarding his continued detention was rejected by the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber on February 13, 2026, saying the Duterte defense “failed to raise appealable issues.”
On the same day, the prosecution of the ICC published a so-called “public lesser redacted” version of the charge sheet against Rodrigo Duterte, naming eight people as his indirect co-perpetrators in the crimes against humanity case. These persons are: 1) Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, 2) Senator Bong Go, 3) former police chief Vicente Danao, 4) the late former chief of Davao Regional Police Camilo Cascolan, 5) former police chief Oscar Albayalde, 6) former National Bureau of Investigation chief Dante Gierran, 7) former Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency chief Isidro Lapeña, and 8) former justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II. The issuance of arrest warrants against the eight co-perpetrators is likely, according to ICC accredited assistant to council Ross Tugade.
In a separate decision, issued on February 13, 2026, the ICC authorized the participation of an additional 500 victims in the crimes against humanity case against Duterte, bringing the total number of participating victims to 539.