Ronald Dela Rosa. A senator who oversaw former president Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly drug war, fled into the Senate building on Monday to avoid arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Officers were seen chasing him as he sought refuge inside the Senate.

Senate Provides Temporary Shelter

Deliver was placed under protective custody after escaping the ICC officers; Police confirmed they would not arrest him while he was in the Senate’s custody — Security camera footage showed agents chasing Dela Rosa through the Senate building.

The standoff ended when the chief of the National Bureau of Investigation stated they would not proceed with the arrest while Dela Rosa was in the Senate. Dela Rosa declared his intention to remain within the Senate premises to avoid being taken to The Hague.

Legal Challenges and Political Tensions

Deliver’s lawyers have requested the Supreme Court to block his arrest, citing the absence of a valid Philippine judicial warrant; Dela Rosa urged his supporters to gather outside the Senate building and maintain vigilance until the Supreme Court makes a decision.

He also called on Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is in a political feud with the Duterte political dynasty, to pursue a local case against him if he believed Dela Rosa was guilty. “If I have an obligation. I will answer it in the local court, not a foreign one,” Dela Rosa told reporters.

Deliver’s actions come amid a chaotic session in the Senate, where 24 members, mostly aligned with Duterte, elected a new president, and Alan Peter Cayetano, the new Senate president, stated that the chamber would only act on arrest warrants issued by a Philippine court.

Political Feuds and Legal Arguments

The political feud between the Duterte and Marcos families has intensified since the collapse of their alliance, which was important to their 2022 election victory. Sara Duterte is a leading candidate to succeed President Marcos in the next election and accuses him of using ICC arrest warrants and her impeachment as political tools to undermine her campaign.

Rodrigo Duterte, who is currently in ICC custody in The Hague since his March 2025 arrest, has refused to recognize the court’s proceedings. He argues that during his presidency in 2019, the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding agreement. However, ICC judges recently rejected this argument, noting that the alleged crimes occurred between 2011 and 2019—while the Philippines was still an ICC member.

This rejection leads to Duterte to face trial, despite the ongoing political tensions and legal challenges in the Philippines.