Duterte appoints Medialdea as legal counsel for ICC trial

Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Salvador Medialdea as his legal counsel for his upcoming trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Duterte made the announcement in a handwritten letter. Duterte arrived in The Hague, Netherlands, on Wednesday and is set to face the ICC's pre-trial on Friday. He is under investigation for alleged crimes against humanity related to his anti-drug campaign from 2016 to 2019. The ICC retains jurisdiction over these allegations despite Duterte's withdrawal from the Rome Statute in 2018, as the withdrawal took effect only in March 2019.