A legal group critical of President Duterte, the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers, said the allegations "smack of political persecution and shotgun repression on its face using again the legal system as a potent political weapon through the law of rulers."

Members of the Dominican general chapter elected 51-year-old Father Gerard Francisco Timoner to be the master general of the worldwide religious order.

A group of Philippine mothers and children facing imminent deportation from Israel are finding some solace in their faith, with weekly prayer meetings and counseling from their parish priest and nuns.

President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines threatened to put all of his critics in jail if they do not relent in their criticism of him, resulting in even greater criticism of his methods and behavior.

The Philippine journalist Maria Ressa was arrested on Feb. 13.

Five suspected Abu Sayyaf militants accused of involvement in a deadly suicide attack at a Roman Catholic cathedral in the southern Philippines have surrendered to authorities, the national police chief said Monday amid renewed terrorism fears.