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Philippine Mayor On President Rodrigo Duterte's List Of Top Drug Suspects Shot Dead

Philippine Mayor On President Rodrigo Duterte's List Of Top Drug Suspects Shot Dead

Reynaldo Parojinog, mayor of the city of Ozamiz on Mindanao island, was killed with his wife and 10 others.

James Dawson

James Dawson

A Philippine mayor, accused of having links to the illegal drugs trade, has become the latest official to be killed by police in the country's controversial war on drugs.

Reynaldo Parojinog, mayor of the city of Ozamiz on Mindanao island, was killed along with his wife and 10 others, after reportedly resisting arrest after police stormed the farm where he and his family lived.

He is the third mayor to have been killed in President Rodrigo Duterte's crackdown on narcotics.

Parojinog's brother was also among those killed during the raid and his daughter, Vice Mayor Nova Echaves, was arrested.

President Rodrigo Duterte gives his second State of the Nation Address last week. Credit: PA Images

Police on the scene recovered several high-powered firearms and an unspecified amount of methamphetamine, Timoteo Pacleb, chief of police of Northern Mindanao, told reporters.

"The Parojinogs, if you would recall, are included in President Duterte's list of personalities involved in the illegal drug trade," Ernesto Abella, the president's spokesperson, said in a statement.

Since President Duterte took office in late June 2016, thousands of people have been killed as part of a campaign to purge the Philippines of illegal drugs.

Protesters scatter pairs of slippers and shoes to symbolize victims killings in the war on drugs of President Rodrigo Duterte. Credit: PA Images

Protesters march towards Congress during a rally coinciding President Rodrigo Duterte's annual State of the Nation Address. Credit: PA Images

The president has made no secret of his stance on drug-takers and their facilitators. A month before being elected, he vowed: "All of you who are into drugs, you sons of bitches, I will really kill you."

The president's actions have made him popular with some Filipinos, but have attracted criticism from international human rights groups and protests in the country.

In April, a Filipino human rights lawyer filed a complaint at the international criminal court (ICC) accusing president Rodrigo Duterte and 11 other Philippine officials of mass murder and crimes against humanity.

The complaint said the killing of 9,400 people began in 1988 when Duterte was mayor of the southern city of Davao and has lasted throughout his presidency.

Sources: The Guardian, The Daily Mail, TIME, BBC News

Featured Image Credit: PA Images