Former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested Tuesday for his alleged crimes against humanity committed during his war on drugs, The Wall Street Journal reported.
In an arrest warrant, the International Criminal Court accused Duterte of murdering thousands during his six years as president and during his 22 years as mayor of Davao, Philippines.
After his arrest, the 79-year-old was escorted on a flight to The Hague, Netherlands, where the ICC is headquartered.
“This is not justice, this is oppression and persecution,” Sara Duterte, the former president’s daughter, said.
Since Duterte became president on June 30, 2016, his war on drugs led to the deaths of more than 12,000 Filipinos accused of drug dealing, according to Human Rights Watch.
At least 2,555 of those killings were attributed to the Philippine National Police, who would sometimes allegedly falsify evidence to justify their killings.
“If I make it to the presidential palace I will do just what I did as mayor. You drug pushers, holdup men, and do-nothings, you better get out because I’ll kill you,” Duterte told a crowd of more than 300,000 the eve of his election victory on May 9, 2016.
Duterte’s war began long before his presidency,