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South African jurist Navi Pillay, 85, wins Nobel Peace Prize hours before Trump issues new ICC sanctions

From the Newshound archive · first published 9 October 2026 · last updated 10 October 2026.

South African jurist Navi Pillay, 85, wins Nobel Peace Prize hours before Trump issues new ICC sanctions

Navi Pillay, the 85-year-old South African jurist who headed the UN human rights office and chaired the commission that found Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, received the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday in recognition of her work advancing peace and international law. Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, described her as "one of the most courageous and important legal experts of our time." Hours after the announcement, the Trump administration imposed fresh sanctions on the International Criminal Court, which it has said it intends to dismantle.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Nobel Committee had 'lost its moral compass' after the award was announced.

Israel's Foreign Ministry branded the prize a 'grotesque weaponization' of the award, calling Pillay's record on Israel a tissue of 'lies, hatred, and blood libels.'

Pillay, who learned the news at a conference in Nuremberg, quipped she might 'share this prize with Trump' after the crowd applauded her.

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