Dela Rosa had not been seen publicly since November before emerging on Monday

Last updated: May 13, 2026 | 16:32

Philippine Senator Ronald dela Rosa AFP-TED ALJIBE

Multiple gunshots were heard on Wednesday inside the Philippine Senate, where a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court has sought refuge, AFP journalists said.

The sound of at least five shots sent journalists fleeing for cover, minutes after soldiers with rifles and protective gear went up the stairs of the legislative building, the journalists said.

Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, former president Rodrigo Duterte's chief drug war enforcer, has holed up at the building since Monday and urged the military to stop attempts to arrest and fly him to the Netherlands to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity.

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"We are under attack," Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano, who is allied to Dela Rosa, later said in a livestream on his Facebook page,…