Philippine lawyer behind Rodrigo Duterte probe: I fear for my life

Jude Sabio. Pic/AFP

Philippine lawyer Jude Sabio felt it was his duty to bring President Rodrigo Duterte's deadly war on drugs to the attention of international war crimes prosecutors, but now that a probe into the killings is under way, he fears he too has become a target.

Sabio, who describes himself as penniless and on the run, said he had received death threats from Duterte supporters on social media after filing a petition with the Hague-based International Criminal Court in April last year.

"I'm in a state of constant paranoia because I fear for my life," Sabio, 51, said in an interview. "It could be very possible that a bullet will hit me." ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda launched a "preliminary examination" after receiving Sabio's petition, which alleges around 8,000 extrajudicial killings, and this could lead to a full investigation by the court. Sabio wants the president arrested.

8,000 No. of extrajudicial killings alleged in Sabio's petition

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