Police Shelter Philippines President Duterte After Deadly Blast

The Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is sheltering at a police station after an explosion in his home city killed 10 people.

The blast happened in the city of Davao on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao. 

At least 60 people were injured in the explosion at the Roxas Street night time market.

President Duterte is a former mayor of the city, and flies back there most weekends. His son Paolo is vice mayor there.

The cause of the blast is so far unknown.

Mr Duterte is a controversial figure. He recently threatened to leave the United Nations after it criticised his war on drugs, calling it a crime under international law.

He also accused the UN of failing on terrorism, hunger and ending conflicts.

Mr Duterte, who was elected in May, has sanctioned the killing of traffickers to try to wipe out the drugs trade.

That policy has been repeatedly condemned by the UN as a violation of human rights.

Around 900 suspected drug traffickers have been killed since Mr Duterte took office.

While he was campaigning, he pledged to kill 100,000 people, and dump so many bodies in Manila Bay that fish would get fat from feeding on them.

And on the day he was sworn in, he encouraged people in slums to kill neighbours they believed were drug addicts.

The president insists police have only acted in self defence, with other killings down to fighting between drugs gangs.

But there has been growing disquiet and calls for restraint from inside the Philippines and elsewhere in the world.

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