Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte attends a senate probe on the drug war during his administration, in Manila on October 28, 2024. Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte strongly defended his deadly drug war as he testified October 28 at a senate probe of the crackdown. Police said the campaign left more than 6,000 people dead, but rights groups estimate tens of thousands of mostly poor men were killed by officers and vigilantes, often without proof they were linked to drugs. - Photo: AFP
MANILA: Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte confirmed a "death squad" existed under his watch to control crime when he was Davao City mayor, but gave conflicting accounts of its makeup, first saying it was run by police officers, then by gangsters.
When Duterte was president, two men including a former policeman had testified before the Senate they were part of an alleged hit squad in Davao they said killed at Duterte's behest, but legislators at the time found no proof and Duterte's aides dismissed the claims as fabrication.
