--- description: In the latest count, 1,011 alleged drug users and pushers have died in police operations, with vigilantes accounting for 1,391 title: Philippines: Rodrigo Duterte's Drug War Claims 2,400 Lives image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fb0324b8d62df7a/6988a4d2cd1bba343070232e/gettyimages-598045608.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Death Toll From Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's War on Drugs Has Exceeded 2,400 by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 5, 2016 8:38 AM CUT  Relatives and mourners carry the coffin of a teenager killed by police as he allegedly resisted arrest during a night patrol on August 31, 2016 in Manila, Philippines. Relatives and mourners carry the coffin of a teenager killed by police as he allegedly resisted arrest during a night patrol on August 31, 2016 in Manila, Philippines.Dondi Tawatao—Getty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 5, 2016 8:38 AM CUT The casualties from the war on drugs being waged by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte continue to mount, with [latest figures](http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/philippine-anti-crime-crusade-death-toll-hits-2400 "undefined") showing that more than 2,400 alleged drug users and drug dealers have been killed since he launched the bloody campaign just over two months ago. Figures released by the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Sunday showed that 1,011 alleged drug users and dealers have been killed in police operations since Duterte began his six-year term on July 1, Agence France-Presse reports. A far higher number — 1,391 — has been chalked up to “deaths under investigation,” most of them believed to have been killed by vigilantes. **Read next:** [_This Is Why Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte Will Get Away With Murder_](http://time.com/4453587/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-dictator-impunity-marcos/ "undefined") The 71-year-old was [elected by a landslide](http://time.com/4328007/why-the-philippines-elected-the-punisher-as-president/ "undefined") in early May on a campaign promise to rid the Southeast Asian nation of crime, particularly the drug trade. He has [exhorted](http://time.com/4392551/philippines-duterte-drugs-communist-new-peoples-army-kill-addicts/ "undefined") his citizens to “kill drug dealers” themselves and told police that he will support them wholeheartedly in doing so as well. The results of his invective have been shocking, with an average of around [37 people per day killed](http://time.com/4462352/rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-drugs-philippines-killing/ "undefined") in extrajudicial fashion. Representatives from the U.N. as well as international [human-rights](https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/08/02/philippines-condemn-surge-killings-criminal-suspects "undefined") [groups](https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2016/06/philippines-duterte-must-break-cycle-of-human-rights-violations/ "undefined") have [condemned](http://time.com/4359466/un-duterte-philippines-incitement-violence/ "undefined") the rampant slaughter, to which Duterte’s response has been dismissive. **Read next:** [_The Killing Time: Inside Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs_](http://time.com/4462352/rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-drugs-philippines-killing/ "undefined") “I don’t care about human rights, believe me,” he said in early August. Duterte has threatened to [impose martial law](http://time.com/4446169/duterte-philippines-martial-law-drugs/ "undefined") if his antidrug campaign is obstructed. Following a bombing in his hometown Davao last week by suspected Islamist militants, which killed 14 people and wounded around 70, he [declared](http://time.com/4478521/philippines-explosion-rodrigo-duterte/ "undefined") a “state of lawlessness” that could see the police and military behave with further impunity in the weeks to come. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/"},"headline":"The Death Toll From Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's War on Drugs Has Exceeded 2,400","datePublished":"2016-09-05T08:38:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T00:23:44.687Z","description":"\"I don't care about human rights, believe me,\" Duterte said in early August","url":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/","keywords":["Philippines","death toll"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fb0324b8d62df7a/6988a4d2cd1bba343070232e/gettyimages-598045608.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fb0324b8d62df7a/6988a4d2cd1bba343070232e/gettyimages-598045608.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Death Toll Climbs During Philippines' War on Drugs","caption":"Death Toll Climbs During Philippines' War on Drugs","creditText":"Dondi Tawatao—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/","name":"The Death Toll From Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's War on Drugs Has Exceeded 2,400"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Philippine President-Elect Urges Citizens to Shoot and Kill Drug Dealers","description":"Philippines' president-elect told citizens to shoot and kill drug dealers.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/45tramfL/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-06-05T21:07:22.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/45tramfL.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/","duration":"PT44S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4478954/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-vigilante-killing-deaths/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```