Duterte's daughter decries his secretive transfer after arrest

Rodrigo Duterte, the firebrand leader who once dared the International Criminal Court to jail him, now finds himself at its mercy after being arrested upon arrival in Manila and swiftly placed on a plane to an undisclosed location (via Reuters).

His daughter, Veronica Duterte, lamented on social media that the family was kept in the dark about his destination, though reports suggest the flight is bound for The Hague, where the court is based.

Duterte's arrest marks a dramatic escalation in the ICC's long-running investigation into thousands of extrajudicial killings linked to his brutal war on drugs, a campaign that defined his presidency and drew international condemnation.

Having pulled the Philippines out of the court's jurisdiction in 2019, Duterte and his allies argue the arrest is illegitimate, but the ICC insists its probe remains valid for crimes committed while the country was still a member.

If transferred to The Hague, Duterte could become the first former Asian head of state to face trial at the ICC, a stunning downfall for a leader who once boasted he was ready to rot in jail for his war on crime. For now, it remains to be seen how the situation will unfold.