International lawyer Nicholas Kaufman, legal counsel for former president Rodrigo Duterte, moved to impugn claims by the International Criminal Court prosecution that minors, except for 17-year-old Kian delos Santos, were among the victims killed during the bloody Duterte drug war.

Kaufman attacked the prosecutions claim on the death of the minors, pointing out that this claim, “pulls the heartstrings” of the public.

“On the subject of the killing of children, of course it ticks the right boxes for the prosecution insofar as it pulls the heartstrings but apart from Kian delos Santos, the prosecution has not, despite its emphasis on children, presented to this chamber during these proceedings, any evidence that even one victim, apart from Kian, in its 49 incidents was a minor,” he said.

He added: “No birth certificates. No corroborative evidence. Nothing,.”

While a number of children were among the thousands killed during Duterte’s presidency, the case of Delos Santos exposed the brutality and corruption behind the drug war killings.

Delos Santos was shot to death despite his pleas of innocence as an alleged drug courier. He was even quoted as having appealed to the policemen to let him go home to study.

Three members of the Caloocan City police were later convicted by the court of murder for Delos Santos’ death a year after the incident took place.

Kaufman moved to cast doubt on the sworn testimonies of witnesses,insisting that no forensic proof or documentary evidence was presented to support the claims.