ICC Prosecution removes one incident in trial brief vs. Duterte

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecution removed one incident from its trial brief against former president Rodrigo Duterte following the Trial Chamber’s order.

The ICC Prosecution and Duterte’s defense team have been discussing the evidence that the former has submitted ahead of the official opening of the trial on November 30. Duterte’s defense team has raised several concerns about the prosecution’s evidence, including its large volume.

“The Prosecution hereby provides an updated version of its Trial Brief filed 4 September 2026 (‘Trial Brief’) and Annexes C.1 and C.2 thereto, further to the Chamber's order to remove Incident 57 from the incidents included in the Trial Brief,” the prosecution said in a document from the ICC.

The ICC prosecution did not publicly disclose which case this was, as it contained sensitive information relating to witnesses.

Following the Chamber’s orders, the Prosecution said that it removed all references to Incident 57 in the Trial Brief, replacing them with “[DELETED]" to be able to cross-reference it.

“No amendments have been made to the Prosecution's List of Witnesses or its List,” the prosecution said.

According to the prosecution panel, other incidents relating to Incident 57 still had contextual elements of crimes against humanity and Duterte’s supposed criminal responsibility.

The document was signed by acting prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang.

Duterte is detained at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, for crimes against humanity in relation to the drug war.

The drug war saw at least 6,000 people dead, with rights groups believing that the number could be as high as 30,000. —LDF, GMA News