MANILA: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatened Wednesday to resort to emergency powers and enforce them “to the hilt” to deal with relentless criticism over his human rights record, crimes and government wrongdoing.
Duterte, who placed the southern third of the archipelago nation last year under martial law to battle Muslim militants, said “there’s no difference actually between martial law and a declaration of national emergency.”
“Even with this meager emergency power, I will use it to the hilt (to) put things in order,” the brash-talking president said in a late-night news conference upon arrival from a South Korean trip.
He has threatened before to resort to authoritarian rule nationwide if lawlessness worsens beyond control.
Looking exasperated, Duterte warned that he would place problematic government agencies under his office so he could supervise them directly. He has publicly fired several officials for alleged corruption, excessive foreign trips and other unspecified wrongdoings.
“I’m warning all of you criminals, all, in government or outside of it. I will make radical changes in the days to come,” he said. “For those offices which could no longer be put under control, I will place you under the office of the president. I’ll be the one you’ll face every day.”
It’s unclear what triggered the volatile leader’s latest outburst.
The 73-year-old former city mayor drew widespread condemnation at home after he kissed a married Filipina on the lips in front of thousands of Filipino workers in a town hall meeting in Seoul.
He has repeatedly lashed out at US and European officials, UN rights experts and watchdogs for raising alarm over his bloody crackdown against illegal drugs. His administration has also been blamed for rising inflation after it pushed through with a government tax reform package and for being soft on China in South China Sea disputes.
During the news conference, Duterte asked before a reporter had a chance to speak, “What is your question, about the kissing?” The president went on to explain that the controversial act was “pure showbiz” done without malice and aimed at entertaining the huge Filipino crowd.
“That’s my style ... There is nothing wrong in a simple kiss (and) you cause an uproar. They’re just envious,” the president said, although he acknowledged that he may be confronted by his two daughters when he returns home.
The kissing episode sparked another uproar when an official and one of Duterte’s fierce backers, Mocha Uson, uploaded a video that showed late Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. being kissed by a woman on board a plane shortly before he was assassinated by soldiers at Manila airport in 1983. Aquino’s killing sparked protests that ousted then President Ferdinand Marcos three years later.
Aquino’s daughter and popular actress Kris Aquino slammed Uson in emotional remarks and warned she would confront her if Uson did anything that would besmirch the reputation of her parents, who are revered pro-democracy champions in the Philippines.
![]()
Duterte threatens to use emergency rule ‘to the hilt’
Duterte threatens to use emergency rule ‘to the hilt’
Israel says Netanyahu will meet with Trump on Wednesday about Iran talks
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Wednesday about the US talks with Iran
JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Wednesday about American talks with Iran, his office said Saturday, while Iran’s foreign minister threatened US military bases in the region a day after the discussions.
“The prime minister believes that all negotiations must include limiting the ballistic missiles, and ending support for the Iranian axis,” Netanyahu’s office said in a brief statement, referring to Tehran’s support for militant groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories. Trump and Netanyahu last met in December.
There was no immediate White House comment.
The US and the Islamic Republic of Iran held indirect talks on Friday in Oman that appeared to return to the starting point on how to approach discussions over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump called the talks “very good” and said more were planned for early next week. Washington was represented by Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to use force to compel Iran to reach a deal on its nuclear program after sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and other warships to the region amid Tehran’s crackdown on nationwide protests that killed thousands.
Gulf Arab nations fear an attack could spark a regional war, with memories fresh of the 12-day Israel-Iran war in June.
For the first time in negotiations with Iran, the US on Friday brought its top military commander in the Middle East to the table. US Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, head of the military’s Central Command, then visited the USS Abraham Lincoln on Saturday with Witkoff and Kushner, the command said in a statement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told journalists Friday that “nuclear talks and the resolution of the main issues must take place in a calm atmosphere, without tension and without threats.” He said that diplomats would return to their capitals, signaling that this round of negotiations was over.
On Saturday, Araghchi told the Al Jazeera satellite news network that if the US attacks Iran, his country doesn’t have the ability to strike the US “and therefore has to attack or retaliate against US bases in the region.”
He said there is “very, very deep distrust” after what happened during the previous talks, when the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites during last year’s Israel-Iran war.
Araghchi also said the “missile issue” and other defense matters are “in no way negotiable, neither now nor at any time in the future.”
Tehran has maintained that these talks will be only on its nuclear program.
However, Al Jazeera reported that diplomats from Egypt, Turkiye and Qatar offered Iran a proposal in which Tehran would halt enrichment for three years, send its highly enriched uranium out of the country and pledge to “not initiate the use of ballistic missiles.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that the talks needed to include all those issues.
Israel, a close US ally, believes Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon and wants its program scrapped, though Iran has insisted that its atomic plans are for peaceful purposes. Israel also wants a halt to Iran’s ballistic missile program and its support for militant groups in the region.
Araghchi, speaking at a forum in Qatar on Saturday, accused Israel of destabilizing the region, saying that it “breaches sovereignties, it assassinates official dignitaries, it conducts terrorist operations, it expands its reach in multiple theaters.” He criticized Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and called for “comprehensive and targeted sanctions against Israel, including an immediate arms embargo.”
“The prime minister believes that all negotiations must include limiting the ballistic missiles, and ending support for the Iranian axis,” Netanyahu’s office said in a brief statement, referring to Tehran’s support for militant groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories. Trump and Netanyahu last met in December.
There was no immediate White House comment.
The US and the Islamic Republic of Iran held indirect talks on Friday in Oman that appeared to return to the starting point on how to approach discussions over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump called the talks “very good” and said more were planned for early next week. Washington was represented by Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to use force to compel Iran to reach a deal on its nuclear program after sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and other warships to the region amid Tehran’s crackdown on nationwide protests that killed thousands.
Gulf Arab nations fear an attack could spark a regional war, with memories fresh of the 12-day Israel-Iran war in June.
For the first time in negotiations with Iran, the US on Friday brought its top military commander in the Middle East to the table. US Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, head of the military’s Central Command, then visited the USS Abraham Lincoln on Saturday with Witkoff and Kushner, the command said in a statement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told journalists Friday that “nuclear talks and the resolution of the main issues must take place in a calm atmosphere, without tension and without threats.” He said that diplomats would return to their capitals, signaling that this round of negotiations was over.
On Saturday, Araghchi told the Al Jazeera satellite news network that if the US attacks Iran, his country doesn’t have the ability to strike the US “and therefore has to attack or retaliate against US bases in the region.”
He said there is “very, very deep distrust” after what happened during the previous talks, when the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites during last year’s Israel-Iran war.
Araghchi also said the “missile issue” and other defense matters are “in no way negotiable, neither now nor at any time in the future.”
Tehran has maintained that these talks will be only on its nuclear program.
However, Al Jazeera reported that diplomats from Egypt, Turkiye and Qatar offered Iran a proposal in which Tehran would halt enrichment for three years, send its highly enriched uranium out of the country and pledge to “not initiate the use of ballistic missiles.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that the talks needed to include all those issues.
Israel, a close US ally, believes Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon and wants its program scrapped, though Iran has insisted that its atomic plans are for peaceful purposes. Israel also wants a halt to Iran’s ballistic missile program and its support for militant groups in the region.
Araghchi, speaking at a forum in Qatar on Saturday, accused Israel of destabilizing the region, saying that it “breaches sovereignties, it assassinates official dignitaries, it conducts terrorist operations, it expands its reach in multiple theaters.” He criticized Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and called for “comprehensive and targeted sanctions against Israel, including an immediate arms embargo.”
Latest updates
Recommended
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.