Navanethem "Navi" Pillay wins 2026 Nobel Peace Prize

The 2026 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to South African jurist Navanethem "Navi" Pillay, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced in Oslo on October 9, 2026.

Committee cites defence of international law and fight against mass atrocity

In its citation the Committee said Pillay, who is of Indian descent, was chosen for her steadfast defence of international law and her efforts to combat war crimes and genocide. Committee president Jørgen Watne Frydnes said: "She is honoured for her brave commitment to international law and for her dedication in the fight against war crimes and genocide."

Pillay’s legal career spans national and international courts. She was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of South Africa in 1995 and five years later became a judge and president of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. From 2008 to 2014 she served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and led the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Nobel Committee said it had been unable to reach Pillay immediately. "Unfortunately, we were unable to reach Navi Pillay," Frydnes said, and added an appeal to the laureate: "If you see a call from a Norwegian number, please answer; we would like to speak with you."

This year the jury considered 287 candidates. The prize carries SEK 12 million in prize money — a sum the Committee described as slightly more than one million euros — and the awards will be presented on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death. As tradition holds, the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony will take place in Oslo rather than Stockholm.

The announcement also recalled last year’s laureate, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won in 2025. The decision provoked controversy after Machado dedicated her prize to former US president Donald Trump and symbolically handed him her Nobel medal; under Nobel Committee rules a laureate cannot officially transfer the award to another person.

Photo: press material from the event