Philippines' war on drugs continue as Duterte marks first year as president

Police officers stand guard at the scene of a shooting victim in Quezon city, north of Manila, Philippines, March 18, 2017. Drug-related killings continue as President Rodrigo Duterte marks his first year in power. The Philippine National Police has claimed that there have been at least 12,000 killings throughout the country in the past year, 3,000 of which were drug suspects shot dead in police operations. Another 2,000 killings have been confirmed by police to be drug-related while the other 7,000 deaths are still under investigation. Human rights groups have said that many of these killings were carried out by undercover police or state sanctioned death squads. United Nations member states called on the Philippine government to conduct a "thorough" investigation into extrajudicial killings in the country and hold accountable the perpetrators. Duterte won the presidency a year ago by pledging to kill thousands in an all-out war against drugs in a country where drugs and crime are deeply-rooted. (Photo by Ezra Acayan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)