South African judge Navanethem “Navi” Pillay has won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize. It is the fifth Nobel awarded this week, after literature, chemistry, physics, and medicine.
“A common thread runs from her early work defending Nelson Mandela and others who stood up against apartheid to her service as a judge in some of the key international court cases of our time,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said. The committee added that it came at a time when “the system of international law is under tremendous pressure, and its institutions are under attack.”
The award came amid controversy over Donald Trump’s alleged immense pressure exerted on the Norwegian committee. It also came the same day Pakistan announced it had nominated Trump again for the prize for playing a “historic role in advancing peace in South Asia.” Trump has argued that he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for what he says are his efforts to settle conflicts in the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere.
A crowning moment for Pillay
Pillay took a playful jab at the US President after learning she had received the honor. “If you clap a little bit more, I may share this prize with Trump,” Pillay said, according to a video clip shared from the moment she heard the news. Her comment made her supporters burst out laughing.
Last year’s Nobel winner, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, presented the award to Trump in Washington, after a U.S. operation captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Machado symbolically handed her prize to Trump as “recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom”. The Nobel Committee quickly clarified that Machado’s gift did not represent an official transfer of her award to Trump.
Pillay’s stellar work includes defending Nelson Mandela and “others who stood up against apartheid”. In addition to serving as an International Criminal Court (ICC) judge, she presided over watershed criminal cases for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).
She also chaired the independent UN commission that concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, a claim which Israel denied. “And you can imagine how surprised I was. Why would you need courage to speak the truth?” Pillay said, noting that people have praised her for her “courage” on the issue. “You interpret the law; you look at all the facts, so it’s an impartial decision-making.”
Meanwhile, Trump criticized the Nobel committee and Pillay by reposting a post on Truth Social. “Today the Nobel Committee shamed itself beyond repair and demeaned the once great Nobel Peace Prize by giving it to the UN’s Navi Pillay,” the post from the law firm of attorney David Schoen said, which represented Trump in his second impeachment trial in 2021.
Published: Oct 9, 2026 04:05 pm