
Hundreds of dead bodies lay unclaimed in the morgues of Manila as families struggle to cope with the death toll of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs.

Horrifying photos taken inside the capital's makeshift morgue show workers and their children living among the dead and cramming bodies into mass graves as the city fails to cope with the number of victims of extrajudicial killings.

The killings have become so prevalent that the cemetery has now become a shanty town.

Duterte was elected in a landslide in June last year, after vowing to eradicate the use of illegal drugs in the country by killing tens of thousands of people.

More than 6,000 people have been killed during the drug war since it started last July and Duterte has now threatened to impose martial law in his drive against users and dealers.

The radical leader insists he is not a killer, despite the streets being littered with dead bodies, and seems undeterred by international condemnation of his actions.

Police have reported killing 2,250 drug suspects in the past six months. Another 3,710 people were murdered by unknown vigilantes who left signs at the crime scenes accusing their victims of being drug dealers or addicts.

Morgue workers in Manila are pictured carrying an unclaimed body of a victim of an extrajudicial killing as children look on

The cemetery has now become a shanty town for people searching for missing relatives, morgue workers or those left homeless by the murder of a family member

Horrifying photos taken inside the capital's makeshift morgue show workers living among the dead and cramming bodies into graves as the city fails to cope with the volume of victims of extrajudicial killings

Many children stay in the cemetery. The smell in the cramped morgue is foul as bodies start to decompose before workers have time to bury them

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte was elected in a landslide in June last year, after vowing to eradicate the use of illegal drugs in the country by killing tens of thousands of people

Duterte has made no apologies for the killings, saying he would be happy to 'slaughter' three million drug addicts to stop the Philippines from descending into a 'Latin American-style narco state'.

The Catholic Church, counting eight out of every 10 Filipinos among its flock, has now come out against the killings.

Jerome Secillano, public affairs chief for the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, said: 'The Church right now is asserting its influence, that's why in the coming months the Church will be at the forefront in leading against extrajudicial killings. (The drug war) is not any more in accord with the legal processes, and the moral norms are being violated and so now is the time for the Church to speak up.'

More than 6,000 people have been killed during drug war since it started last July and Duterte has now threatened to impose martial law in his drive against users and dealers

The radical leader insists he is not a killer, despite the streets being littered with dead bodies, and seems undeterred by international condemnation of his actions

Many children have been left homeless by the war on drugs and their parents and relatives lie dead in the cemetery

Police have reported killing 2,250 drug suspects in the past six months. Another 3,710 people were murdered by unknown vigilantes

Many of the unknown vigilante killers left signs at the crime scenes accusing their victims of being drug dealers or addicts

The dead are crammed into graves at least two at a time as the morgue struggles to cope with the number of unclaimed bodies

Human rights activists have placed the Philippines in the forefront of their concern as thousands of extrajudicial killings continue since the campaign against illegal drugs began in July last year

Masked morgue workers prepare to bury two bodies, wrapped in an American flag, together as children who now called the shanty town home look on

Duterte has made no apologies for the killings, saying he would be happy to 'slaughter' three million drug addicts to stop the Philippines from descending into a 'Latin American-style narco state'

The public cemetery and mortuary has become a makeshift shanty town and rubbish clutters the 'streets' surrounding the dead bodies

The Catholic Church, counting eight out of every 10 Filipinos among its flock, has now come out against the killings

A young child is pictured hanging from one of the graves as more victims are brought to the mortuary by the van load

Bodies wrapped in an American flag are carried to their burial site. In July, 60,000 Filipino drug addicts surrendered themselves to the government after the President urged citizens to 'go ahead and kill' drug dealers and users But the death toll has continued to rise

President Duterte has made it clear he would pardon police if they were charged with human rights violations for carrying out his merciless orders. Pictured: Morgue workers spray decomposing bodies with chemicals

Thousands of victms, many of them parents to young children, are thought to have been gunned down by vigilante groups, who are paid in cash for each confirmed kill