OSLO, NORWAY: South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for her efforts to promote peace and international law, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced.
Pillay, a former United Nations high commissioner for human rights, was recognised for holding states and national leaders accountable, bringing hope to victims of violence and conflict, and demonstrating a strong moral compass throughout her career.
BREAKING NEWS
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2026 #NobelPeacePrize to Navanethem “Navi” Pillay for her efforts to promote peace and international law.#NobelPrize https://t.co/97vurspw6z
— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 9, 2026
“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 committee said.
Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said Pillay had played a key role in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide were prosecuted.
Amazing moment.
Navi Pillay has received the Nobel Peace Prize ! https://t.co/HL3r1PJzLO
We are at the Nuremberg Court; I cannot think of a stronger symbol for her Nobel prize.
We are all so thrilled!
This is her first reactions upon hearing the news: https://t.co/Crbj6XdiyQ
— Agnes Callamard (@AgnesCallamard) October 9, 2026
Pillay also chaired the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which concluded last year that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza. Israel dismissed the report as “scandalous”.
The Peace Prize was the fifth Nobel award announced this week, following the prizes for literature, chemistry, physics and medicine. The 2026 laureate will receive 12 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to approximately $1.2 million.
The award ceremony is scheduled for December 10 in Oslo, marking the anniversary of the death of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, who established the prizes in his 1895 will.
Pakistan nominates Trump for Peace Prize
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan had nominated US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his role in advancing peace in South Asia.
In a post on X, Sharif said Trump’s “timely intervention helped bring Pakistan and India back from the brink and secure a ceasefire that is holding till today”.
President Donald Trump played a historic role in advancing peace in South Asia. His timely intervention helped bring Pakistan and India back from the brink and secure a ceasefire, that is holding till today.
In recognition of his outstanding contribution, Pakistan had nominated President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
We sincerely hope President’s efforts to promote peace and prevent conflict in our region receive due recognition this time.
@realDonaldTrump @NobelPrize
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) October 9, 2026
“In recognition of his outstanding contribution, Pakistan had nominated President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize,” the prime minister said.
He added that Pakistan hoped Trump’s efforts to promote peace and prevent conflict in the region would receive recognition.
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was established through the will of Alfred Nobel, a Swedish chemist, inventor and entrepreneur who died in 1896. Nobel, best known for inventing dynamite, accumulated much of his fortune through his work in explosives and related technologies. He was also a businessman, poet and linguist who spoke several languages.
In his will, Nobel directed that most of his fortune be used to establish prizes for people who had, during the preceding year, conferred the greatest benefit on humanity.
The five original prize categories – physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace – reflected areas of particular interest to Nobel.
Nobel’s friendship with Austrian peace activist Bertha von Suttner is widely believed to have influenced his decision to include a peace prize. Von Suttner became the first woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, in 1905.
Although Nobel died in 1896, legal and administrative disputes over his will delayed the establishment of the awards. The first Nobel Prizes were finally presented in 1901.
Who awards the Nobel Prizes?
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences selects the laureates for physics and chemistry, while the Swedish Academy is responsible for the literature prize.
The Nobel Assembly at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute awards the prize for physiology or medicine. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, appointed by the Norwegian parliament.
The reason Nobel chose Norway to award the peace prize is not known with certainty. At the time he wrote his will, Sweden and Norway were part of a political union.
Famous Nobel laureates
The Nobel Prize has been awarded to some of the world’s most influential scientists, writers and political figures.
Notable laureates include physicists Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr, writers Ernest Hemingway and Albert Camus, and figures such as Nelson Mandela and Mother Teresa.
The Curie family is among the most distinguished Nobel-winning families. Marie Curie received two Nobel Prizes, while her husband Pierre Curie, daughter Irène Joliot-Curie and son-in-law Frédéric Joliot-Curie also became laureates.
Only five people have won Nobel Prizes more than once. American chemist and peace activist Linus Pauling remains the only person to have received two unshared Nobel Prizes.
The awards have also attracted criticism over the years. For example, the 1949 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to Egas Moniz for work associated with lobotomy has since been heavily criticised as the procedure fell out of favour.
Several Peace Prize decisions have also generated debate, including awards involving Henry Kissinger, Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres. Gandhi’s failure to receive the prize before his death in 1948 has also been widely discussed.
Nobel Prize ceremonies
The Nobel Prizes are presented on December 10 every year, marking the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death. The Nobel Peace Prize ceremony takes place in Oslo and is presided over by the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
The other Nobel Prizes are presented in Stockholm, where the Swedish king traditionally hands the awards to the laureates at the Stockholm Concert Hall. Later that evening, around 1,300 guests attend the traditional Nobel banquet at Stockholm City Hall.
READ ALSO: Nobel Prizes 2026: What They Are and When the Winners Will Be Announced
The elaborate dinner is prepared months in advance by leading Swedish chefs and sommeliers, while around 200 waiters serve the guests. The menu is kept secret until the meal is served and traditionally features Nordic-inspired cuisine.
Last year’s menu included porcini mushroom soup, turbot stuffed with scallops and sugar kelp, followed by blackthorn berry sorbet with freshly baked cheese cream and browned-butter sponge.
The 2026 Nobel announcements will once again draw global attention as the world’s most prestigious awards honour achievements across science, literature, economics and peace.
