Watch: Gunshots heard at Philippine Senate, lawmakers run for cover

Multiple gunshots were heard wrong the Philippine Senate connected Wednesday, wherever legislator Ronald dela Rosa had sought refuge amid efforts to apprehension him implicit an International Criminal Court (ICC) case.Journalists astatine the country reported proceeding astatine slightest 5 gunshots minutes aft soldiers carrying rifles and wearing protective cogwheel entered the legislative building.Dela Rosa has appealed to the subject to artifact attempts to apprehension him and extradite him to the Netherlands, wherever the ICC is headquartered successful The Hague, to look charges of crimes against humanity. The senator, who served arsenic erstwhile president Rodrigo Duterte’s main enforcer successful the anti-drug campaign, has been wrong the Senate gathering since Monday.

“We are nether attack,” Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano, an state of Dela Rosa, said successful a livestream connected Facebook, without providing further details.Another Dela Rosa ally, legislator Robin Padilla, was aboriginal seen moving upstairs portion urging journalists to permission the area. Dela Rosa’s whereabouts were not instantly known.Earlier connected Wednesday, Dela Rosa, popularly known arsenic “Bato”, appealed to “my chap men successful uniform” and erstwhile classmates astatine the Philippine Military Academy to reason what helium called attempts by president Ferdinand Marcos Junior’s authorities to “hand maine implicit to foreigners."

Dela Rosa served arsenic Philippine constabulary main betwixt 2016 and 2018 during the archetypal 2 years of Duterte’s presidency. Human rights groups allege Duterte’s anti-drug crackdown near thousands dead, galore of them suspected cause users and small-time peddlers.Duterte himself was arrested successful March past twelvemonth and flown to the Netherlands, wherever helium remains detained successful The Hague awaiting trial.Dela Rosa had mostly stayed retired of nationalist presumption since November past twelvemonth earlier resurfacing connected Monday to enactment successful a astonishment Senate ballot that helped Duterte loyalists regain power of the chamber.(With AFP inputs)