The International Criminal Court said on Thursday that it was opening a preliminary investigation into accusations that President Rodrigo Duterte and other Philippine officials had committed crimes against humanity in the course of the government’s deadly crackdown on drugs. A lawyer for confessed Davao Death Squad (DDS) hit man Edgar Matobato filed crimes against humanity charges against Duterte and 11 of his allies in the ICC at The Hague in April last year. According to the latest #RealNumbersPH release, there have been 6,309 drug-related deaths from July 1, 2016 to Jan. 17, 2018. Of these cases, 2,235 were tagged as homicide cases under investigation.