Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte addresses the troops during the 82nd anniversary celebration of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in suburban Quezon city northeast of Manila, Philippines on Dec.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands () — Judges at the International Criminal Court on Wednesday disqualified the court’s chief prosecutor from the case against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is charged with involvement in dozens of killings as part of his so-called “war on drugs” when in office.
The written decision cited a “reasonable appearance of bias” because Prosecutor Karim Khan — before he took office — represented victims of Duterte’s alleged crimes.
2 but released in redacted form on Wednesday, comes with Khan already having stepped back in May from his duties pending the outcome of an independent investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct.
Court spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah said in a message on X that the disqualification would not have an impact on the case against Duterte, which would continue to be led by a deputy prosecutor.
Duterte’s lawyer, Nick Kaufman, said in a message to The that Khan’s “ethical obligations to his former clients were irreconcilable with his duties as chief prosecutor.
Duterte’s guilt contaminated the investigation that he later supervised.”.
Prosecutors had urged the judges to reject the request, arguing that the “mere fact of the Prosecutor’s involvement in a prior factual investigation cannot suffice for disqualification,” according to the ruling.
Duterte was arrested in March and sent to the court in The Hague.
He denies the charges of crimes against humanity.
The political importance lies in whether the issue moves from public comment into formal action, party response, court record, election authority notice or administrative decision.
