ICC prosecution to file response to Duterte’s interim release request

Metro Manila, Philippines - The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecution said it will be filing its response to former President Rodrigo Duterte’s request for interim release.

In a response to NewsWatch Plus’s email, the prosecution refused to comment on its stance to the Duterte camp’s claim that it had agreed not to oppose the interim release subject to certain conditions.

“The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court will file before Pre-Trial Chamber I a response to the Defence’s request for interim release of Mr Rodrigo Roa Duterte,” it said.

“The Prosecution will file a public version which will clearly set out its position on the Defence's application,” it added.

This follows Duterte’s request filed by lawyer Nicholas Kaufman which states that an “undisclosed country” has agreed to take in the ex-president.

In the 16-page request Kaufman said Duterte was “not a flight risk” and his detention in The Hague is not necessary amid his ongoing case on charges of crimes against humanity.

Duterte is facing raps in relation to his alleged drug war killings when he was mayor of Davao City and when he was president of the Philippines.

In the same letter, Kaufman said the prosecution has confirmed its “non-opposition” to the interim release of Duterte to the unnamed country as long as certain terms and conditions are met.