Philippine leader Duterte unabashedly threatens to kill drug dealers

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gestures as he delivers his 6th State of the Nation Address (SONA), at the House of Representative in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, July 26, 2021.- Reuters

MANILA, July 27 (AP): Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte unabashedly renewed his threat to kill drug dealers in his final state of the nation speech late on Monday (july 26), while defending his non-confrontational approach in the country's territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea.

Duterte, 76, who won a six-year presidential term in 2016, is winding down his often-tumultuous presidency amid a raging pandemic, a battered economy and a legacy overshadowed by his deadly campaign against illegal drugs that has set off complaints of mass murder before the International Criminal Court.