<p>At least five gunshots were heard on Wednesday inside the Philippine Senate, where authorities have tried to arrest a senator, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, as per the journalists.</p><p>This made the journalists fleeing for cover, minutes after soldiers with rifles and protective gear went up the stairs of the legislative building, they said.</p>.Death toll in Philippine boat accident climbs to 15, hundreds rescued.<p>Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, former president Rodrigo Duterte's chief drug war enforcer, has holed up at the building since May and urged the military to stop attempts to arrest and fly him to the Netherlands to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity.</p><p>"We are under attack," Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano, who is allied to Dela Rosa, later said in a livestream on his Facebook page, without elaborating.</p><p>Robin Padilla, a senator also allied with Dela Rosa, was later seen walking up the stairs while urging the journalists to leave the area.</p>.Trump safe after gunshots heard at White House correspondent’s dinner; shooter in custody .<p>However, there have not yet been any casualties reported after shots were fired, Senate Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza said.</p><p>The situation is still being assessed after an undetermined number of law enforcers attempted to enter the building, he said. </p><p>Interior Minister Jonvic Remulla said it was unclear who fired shots and security footage would need to be checked. He said Dela Rosa was safe and he assured him no arrest would be made.</p><p>The office of the prosecutor at the ICC referred requests for comment to the court. The court's press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.</p><p>Dela Rosa was Duterte's top lieutenant overseeing a fierce crackdown during which thousands of alleged drug dealers were slain, with human rights groups accusing police of systematic murders and cover-ups.</p><p>Police reject the allegations and say the more than 6,000 killed in anti-drugs operations were all armed and had resisted arrest.</p><p>Activists say the real death toll may never be known, with users and small-time peddlers gunned down almost daily in mysterious slumland killings blamed on vigilantes and turf wars.</p><p>The Senate was heavily guarded throughout Wednesday, with lines of police deployed to keep the peace as protesters gathered, some calling for the arrest of dela Rosa, better known in the Philippines as "Bato", or "rock".</p><p>His ally, Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, said he had spoken to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who had assured him no government personnel had been involved in Wednesday's incident.</p><p>Dela Rosa, who returned to the Senate on Monday for the first time since disappearing from public view in November, has appealed to Marcos not to hand him over to the ICC.</p><p>He has also filed an emergency petition with the Supreme Court urging it to block any attempt to transfer him to The Hague. The court in a statement on Wednesday gave all parties to the petition 72 hours to respond.</p>
<p>At least five gunshots were heard on Wednesday inside the Philippine Senate, where authorities have tried to arrest a senator, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, as per the journalists.</p><p>This made the journalists fleeing for cover, minutes after soldiers with rifles and protective gear went up the stairs of the legislative building, they said.</p>.Death toll in Philippine boat accident climbs to 15, hundreds rescued.<p>Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, former president Rodrigo Duterte's chief drug war enforcer, has holed up at the building since May and urged the military to stop attempts to arrest and fly him to the Netherlands to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity.</p><p>"We are under attack," Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano, who is allied to Dela Rosa, later said in a livestream on his Facebook page, without elaborating.</p><p>Robin Padilla, a senator also allied with Dela Rosa, was later seen walking up the stairs while urging the journalists to leave the area.</p>.Trump safe after gunshots heard at White House correspondent’s dinner; shooter in custody .<p>However, there have not yet been any casualties reported after shots were fired, Senate Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza said.</p><p>The situation is still being assessed after an undetermined number of law enforcers attempted to enter the building, he said. </p><p>Interior Minister Jonvic Remulla said it was unclear who fired shots and security footage would need to be checked. He said Dela Rosa was safe and he assured him no arrest would be made.</p><p>The office of the prosecutor at the ICC referred requests for comment to the court. The court's press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.</p><p>Dela Rosa was Duterte's top lieutenant overseeing a fierce crackdown during which thousands of alleged drug dealers were slain, with human rights groups accusing police of systematic murders and cover-ups.</p><p>Police reject the allegations and say the more than 6,000 killed in anti-drugs operations were all armed and had resisted arrest.</p><p>Activists say the real death toll may never be known, with users and small-time peddlers gunned down almost daily in mysterious slumland killings blamed on vigilantes and turf wars.</p><p>The Senate was heavily guarded throughout Wednesday, with lines of police deployed to keep the peace as protesters gathered, some calling for the arrest of dela Rosa, better known in the Philippines as "Bato", or "rock".</p><p>His ally, Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, said he had spoken to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who had assured him no government personnel had been involved in Wednesday's incident.</p><p>Dela Rosa, who returned to the Senate on Monday for the first time since disappearing from public view in November, has appealed to Marcos not to hand him over to the ICC.</p><p>He has also filed an emergency petition with the Supreme Court urging it to block any attempt to transfer him to The Hague. The court in a statement on Wednesday gave all parties to the petition 72 hours to respond.</p>
