South African jurist Navi Pillay has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote peace and international law, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on Friday. The 85-year-old former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was recognised for her decades of work advancing accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

Pillay previously chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Pales-tinian Territory, which concluded in a 2025 report that Israel had committed genocide in Ga-za. Israel rejected the report. Reacting to the award at a legal gathering in Nuremberg, Germany, Pillay highlighted the Ga-za report as her most recent work, questioning why speaking the truth should require courage.

Born in Durban, South Africa, Pillay became the first woman to establish a law practice in Natal Province in 1967 and later served as a judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. During her work on the tribunal, she contributed to landmark legal precedents recognising that rape and sexual violence can constitute genocide under certain circumstances. She also served as a judge at the International Criminal Court and as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2008 to 2014.

The Nobel Committee said Pillay had helped strengthen international legal institutions and accountability mechanisms. She currently serves as an ad hoc judge at the International Court of Justice in the case concerning allegations of genocide against Myanmar over its treatment of the Rohingya. The committee said her recognition highlights the importance of international law at a time when legal institutions and judges face increasing pressure.

Pillay is the fifth South African recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, following Albert Luthuli, Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk. The prize, worth 12 million Swedish kronor, is scheduled to be presented in Oslo on December 10. Her selection has drawn praise from international human rights advocates, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticised the decision, accusing Pillay of bias against Israel.