Attack: Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte lashed out at Hillary Clinton who criticized his comments on rape

Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has denounced Chelsea Clinton as he tried to defend a 'joke' he made about his troops raping women.

The controversial president - who has overseen the murder of thousands of drug users and has now declared martial law as he fights an ISIS insurgency - used Clinton's father's affair with Monica Lewinsky to attack the former first daughter.

Chelsea joined a chorus of condemnation of Duterte's remark that his soldiers could rape up to three women each and he would 'take responsibility' after declaring martial law in the city of Marawi.

Duterte said today: 'These whores, they hear "rape". Like, like Chelsea, she slammed me. I was not joking, I was being sarcastic. Listen to the speech. I do not laugh at my own jokes.'

'I will tell her, when your father, the president of the United States, was f***ing Lewinsky and the girls in the White House, how did you feel? Did you slam your father?'

The former first daughter had tweeted 'Not funny. Ever' in reaction to the news of Duterte's remarks on rape.

In a second post she wrote: 'Duterte is a murderous thug with no regard for human rights. It's important to keep pointing that out and that rape is never a joke.'

Duterte's troops are locked in battle with ISIS fighters in the city of Marawi in the south of the country.

Fighting: Duterte declared martial law as he battles ISIS militants in the city of Marawi. He told his soldiers: 'Just do your work. I will handle the rest. I will be imprisoned for you. If you rape three (women), I will say that I did it.' Trapped villagers are pictured being rescued

Amidst the fighting that has forced 50,000 people to flee, teenage ISIS fighters are said to be shooting people dead for failing to quote the Koran.

Duterte declared martial law across the entire southern region of Mindanao last week, home to roughly 20 million people, in response to the crisis as he warned that local militant groups were uniting behind ISIS and becoming a major security threat.

If you rape three (women), I will say that I did it. President Rodrigo Duterte in a message to his troops in the Philippines

Shortly after declaring martial law, he told his troops in a speech: ' 'For this martial law and the consequences of martial law and the ramifications of martial law, I and I alone would be responsible.

'Just do your work. I will handle the rest. I will be imprisoned for you. If you rape three (women), I will say that I did it.'

That remark was met with widespread condemnation, and on Wednesday Duterte tried to defend himself.

At the end of a long speech to naval officers and their families, Duterte said he was just being sarcastic as he took aim at people who criticized his rape remarks but particularly Clinton.

The president who ordered the slaughter of thousands, banned beauty pageants and pushed for women's rights in the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte ran for mayor if Davao City and won in 1988. He was re-elected several times and waged a war on crime in the Philippines. Among his many crackdowns, Duterte banned swimsuit competitions in beauty pageants in Davao City, slashed speed limits, banned cigarettes and firecrackers and also ordered every shopping mall and commercial centre to install CCTV. Duterte also passed the city's Women Development Code, the first and only in the country, which aims 'to uphold the rights of women and the belief in their worth and dignity as human beings' and pushed for the Magna Carta for Women in Davao. More recently, he turned his attention to drug dealers and users in the country. By December, the death toll stood at 5,927 after five months. Duterte said the way to stop the slaughter is to stop taking drugs. The radical leader insists he is not a killer, despite the country's streets being littered with dead bodies due to his crackdown on illicit drugs. He also admitted killing personally. Now, his efforts have turned to ISIS, who are wreaking havoc in Marawi. Advertisement

Chelsea Clinton condemned his remarks with a tweet that said 'Not funny. Ever'. Duterte hit back: 'When your father, the president of the United States, was f***ing Lewinsky and the girls in the White House, how did you feel?

He then accused American soldiers of raping women in the Philippines and Japan, without giving details, before returning to Clinton.

'It is a crime actually committed by soldiers, mostly Americans in Okinawa,' he said, referring to several rape cases involving U.S. servicemen stationed in Japan, most recently last year.

ISIS plan to burn a city General Eduardo Ano, the military chief, said extremists had plotted to set Marawi ablaze entirely to project ISIS' influence. The extremists wanted to kill Christians in nearby Iligan city on Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting, to mimic the violence seen by the world in Syria and Iraq, Ano said. Southeast Asian fighters fleeing the Middle East 'could look to Mindanao to provide temporary refuge as they work their way home,' said a report late last year by the Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, predicting a high risk of regional violence. Marawi is regarded as the heartland of the Islamic faith on Mindanao island. Advertisement

"But, we never heard of a Filipino. But I am just warning them that anything they do, I have to answer for it. I take full responsibility for your foolishness. I speak sarcastically."

'You Americans, like Chelsea, be careful because you live in a glass house,' he said.

'I repeat, when President Clinton was f***ing Lewinsky, what was your statement or your reaction?'

It was not the first time Duterte has made a joke about rape.

He caused outrage in the lead-up to his presidential election win last year when he recalled a 1989 prison riot in which an Australian missionary was killed, and inmates had lined up to rape her.

In what was intended as a joke, Duterte said the victim was "beautiful" and as mayor of Davao city where the riot took place, he should have been first in line. He later apologized and said he meant no disrespect to women or rape victims.

The Australian and American ambassadors to Manila voiced their disapproval at those comments, but Duterte reacted furiously then while insisting he had been taken out of context.

OUTSPOKEN LEADER: PRESIDENT RODRIGO DUTERTE IN QUOTES The outspoken President Rodrigo Duterte Comparing his drugs war to the Holocaust - 'Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now, there is three million drug addicts. I'd be happy to slaughter them. At least Germany had Hitler. The Philippines wouldn't.' Insulting President Obama after he criticised the violence in the Philippines - 'You must be respectful. Do not just throw away questions and statements. Son of a w****, I will curse you in that forum. Instead of helping us, the first to criticize is this State Department, so you can go to hell, Mr Obama, you can go to hell.' Reacting to an EU resolution condemning his drugs crackdown - 'I say to them, f*** you. They're taking the high ground to assuage their feelings of guilt. But who did I kill? Assuming it to be true, 1,700, who are they? Criminals. You call that genocide. Now the EU has the gall to condemn me. So I repeat it. F*** you.' Criticising Pope Francis after his visit to the country caused heavy traffic in Manila - 'We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the Pope. I wanted to call him: "Pope, son of a w****, go home. Do not visit us again".' Pleading to rid the country of drugs during his election campaign - 'Forget the laws on human rights. If I make it to the presidential palace, I will do just what I did as mayor. You drug pushers, hold-up men and do-nothings, you better go out. Because I'd kill you. I'll dump all of you into Manila Bay, and fatten all the fish there.' On admitting to killing a man by throwing him out of a helicopter - 'I've done that, why won't I do it again?' Advertisement

Philippine soldiers walk past Islamic State (IS) group graffiti in Marawi on the southern island of Mindanao

Rescue workers are escorted by Philippine soldiers as smoke from burning houses rise in the background in Marawi

Policemen stand on guard while guarding a main street in Sarimanok village, in Marawi city

Duterte also frequently launches obscenity-filled tirades against critics of his drug war, which has seen thousands of people killed and led to warnings from rights groups that he may be orchestrating a crime against humanity.

Duterte last year called then US president Barack Obama a 'son of a whore' for criticizing the drug war.