# Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte appears by video link in Hague accused of crimes against humanity – as it happened

Duterte faces charges over his years-long campaign against drug users and dealers that rights groups say killed tens of thousands of people. This live blog is closed to readers.

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## Closing summary

* **Philippine ex-president Rodrigo Duterte appeared by video link before judges at the international criminal court.**
* **Duterte would follow the proceedings through a video link, a court spokesperson said.**
* **No explanation was immediately given for his failure to appear in person for his first hearing at the ICC.**
* **Duterte was to be read his rights and formally informed of the charges of crimes against humanity that the court’s prosecutors filed against him after a lengthy investigation.**
* **Duterte's supporters contest the arrest and say the court doesn’t have jurisdiction.**
* **Former president of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte's arrest came amid a breakdown in relations between his family and the Marcos family, who had previously joined forces to run the Philippines.**
* **Current president Ferdinand Marcos and vice-president Sara Duterte – Rodrigo’s daughter – are at loggerheads, with the latter facing an impeachment trial over charges including an alleged assassination plot against Marcos.**
* **Sara Duterte is in the Netherlands to support her father, after labelling his arrest “oppression and persecution” with the arrest of his family seeking an emergency injunction from the supreme court to stop his transfer.**
* **The court will seek to set a date for a key pre-trial hearing, likely months from now, to assess whether there is enough evidence to proceed to a full trial.**

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