Image source, Reuters

Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnès Callamard was with Pillay in Nuremberg when she found out she had won the award.

She says Pillay is an "inspired choice" for the Nobel Peace Prize.

"Navi’s impressive bio testifies to her work for, and commitment to, international law and international justice," Callamard writes on X.

"At a time when both international law and justice are under attack, when too many states attempt to hollow them out, her Nobel Peace Prize could not come at a better time, Congratulations dear Navi."

Ed Habershon
BBC News Africa

Image source, Getty Images

Navi Pillay today became the fifth South African winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Past winners of the award from South Africa include the former President Nelson Mandela, who became South Africa's first democratically elected leader in 1994 after spending 27 years in prison for his battles against apartheid.

Mandela's predecessor FW De Klerk was also awarded the Peace Prize for his efforts to negotiate the end of apartheid, the releasing of political prisoners including Mandela, and in overseeing the transition to democracy.

The pair shared the award in 1993.

South Africa's other winners include the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who was awarded the prize in 1984 for his role in campaigning against apartheid and the promotion of human rights.

The country's first Peace Prize winner was Albert Luthuli, an early leader of the anti-apartheid African National Congress.

He was awarded the prize in 1961, becoming Africa's first Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

In her impromptu acceptance speech, Pillay says it's appropriate she found out about winning the Nobel Prize while with friends and colleagues who support human rights.

Referring to the report on Gaza she recently completed, she says: "The last thing I did is the delivery of the report on Gaza, naming what's happening there as genocide."

From 2021-25, Pillay chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory - a body established by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate alleged violations of international law.

In 2025 the commission, a fact-finding body with no legal authority, concluded that Israel had commited genocidal acts in Gaza and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his defence minister at the time Yoav Gallant had "incited the commission of genocide" in their speeches and statements.

Israel reacted furiously to the report, rejecting its findings and accusing the three members of the commission of serving as "Hamas proxies".

After being told she has won the Nobel Peace Prize, Navi Pillay jokes that she doesn't quite believe the news is real.

She says she was called away from her desk and a man named Cristoph told her she had won.

"It must be a joke," she says in an impromptu acceptance speech.

"Your applause means everything to me," she says to the small crowd assembled off camera.

"But, being a lawyer and a judge, I still want to verify this thing."

She jokes: "If you clap a little bit more I may share this prize with Trump." As a reminder, last year's winner María Corina Machado gave her medal to the US president in January.

Image source, EPA

Congratulating Pillay on winning the Nobel Peace Prize, President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen says she has "looked the brutality of injustice in the eye and never looked away".

"She is the defender of the persecuted, the vulnerable, the voiceless and the excluded," von der Leyen continues.

She writes on X that few others have devoted their lives to "justice, peace and human dignity" like Navi Pillay did.

"In a world that needs justice more than ever, her courage and moral clarity are a precious compass," she concludes.

Image source, Getty Images

Navanethem "Navi" Pillay became the first woman to start a law practice in South Africa's Natal Province back in 1967.

A bus driver's daughter from a poor Indian section of Durban in South Africa, Pillay grew up and began her human rights work during the apartheid era and became the first non-white woman to establish her own law practice and to be appointed as a High Court Judge in South Africa.

After defending many opponents of apartheid, Pillay was elected as judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda by the UN General Assembly.

She served on the tribunal for eight years, including four years as president.

Until recently, Pillay, now 85, chaired the the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and is currently a judge on the International Court of Justice in the case where Myanmar stands accused of genocide.

Image source, EPA

Frydnes says the committee hasn't actually been able to get hold of this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner Navi Pillay.

"So my message to her would be 'if you see a Norwegian number calling, please pick up'", he laughs, saying "I would love to talk to you very soon".

Continuing his speech announcing the winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize, Frydnes says Pillay has held states and leaders accountable, and brought hope to victims.

He says she has stressed the responsibility of individuals and states to comply with the rule of law.

During the speech, he takes a moment to say the system of international law is under tremendous pressure, adding we are seeing a shift too what he calls "power politics".

"When might overtakes right," he says, "it undermines stability".

Her commitment to justice and human dignity is a source of hope and inspiration to all those who seek to bring about a more peaceful world, he concludes.

The announcement in Oslo has just come to an end - stay with us for the latest.

Navi Pillay has "significantly enlarged the scope and impact of international law," Jørgen Watne Frydnes says.

As he announces this year's winner, he adds Pillay has led the way to "a more comprehensive global legal order," saying she did so with exceptional courage.

The chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee goes on to praise her long career, saying she started off as a lawyer in South Africa confronting deep discrimination.

He says she has a "firm moral compass".

Image source, Getty Images

Navanethem "Navi" Pillay has been announced as the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2026.

She has won for her efforts to promote peace and international law, Jørgen Watne Frydnes says.

We'll bring you more shortly.

The winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize is about to be announced in Oslo, Norway.

We expect the news to come at about 10:00 BST, (11:00 local time) - you can watch live at the top of this page.

Image source, Getty Images

Over the years, the Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 106 times to 143 laureates, including four US presidents - Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.

Malala Yousafzai made history as the youngest ever recipient - earning the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize at just 17 years old.

In 1973, Vietnamese politician Le Duc Tho won the prize "for jointly having negotiated a cease fire in Vietnam in 1973" - but he declined to accept it on the grounds that the truce had been violated.

The award has been won by 112 individuals and 31 organisations, including Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr and Mother Theresa.

"The final preparations are now in order," The Nobel Prize account writes in a post on X.

"Stay tuned."

As a reminder, the winner will be announced at 10:00 BST (11:00 local time) and you'll be able to watch live above.

Trump's fixation with the Nobel Peace Prize began long before he entered officepublished at 09:38 BST

09:38 BST

Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

Image source, Get

For US president Donald Trump, winning a Nobel Peace has long been something of an unfulfilled dream - one that he has yet to achieve.

His fixation with the prize began long before he first came to the White House, to the Obama administration.

Trump was ferociously critical of Barack Obama winning the prize early in his term in 2009, repeatedly referring to it as undeserved and "for nothing".

Trump’s interest in winning his own Nobel prize became more public about halfway through his first term. Following his highly publicised meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, Trump said that "everyone thinks" he deserved the prize.

Matters reached a fever pitch after his return to the White House. Trump often says he has ended "eight" wars - which is widely disputed - and that that fact alone should earn the prize. While he campaigned heavily for it last year, it ultimately went to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump seemed to make a last minute push for the prize.

"I don’t know what their decision’s going to be. They have a reputation for maybe not giving it to people like me," he said. "But whether I get it or not, I have done far more, and I think it would be a great discredit to them."

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize last year for her "tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela".

She had been forced into hiding due to her opposition to then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who was then captured by the US in a raid on his Caracas safehouse at the start of 2026.

On 15 January, Machado presented her prize to US President Donald Trump on a visit to the White House as "recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom".

The following day, The Norwegian Nobel Committee released a statement that said "regardless of what may happen to the medal" it is "the original laureate who is recorded in history as the recipient of the prize".

"Even if the medal or diploma later comes into someone else’s possession, this does not alter who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize."

Image source, Nobel Prize Outreach

The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize receives a gold medal, a diploma and prize money.

The prize money is generated from Alfred Nobel's estate - worth about £166m in today's money at the time of his death - which he instructed to be put into "safe" investments.

For 2026, the prize money for the award is set at 12 million Swedish krona (about £900k or $1.2m).

The medal is made from 18 carat gold, weighs 175g and features a portrait of Alfred Nobel.

The diploma, described by Nobel Institute as a "unique work of art", lists the recipient and award alongside a piece of artwork.

Last year's winner María Corina Machado handed her 18 carat gold medal to US President Donald Trump - we'll bring you more on that in our next post.

Image source, Getty Images

The prize

The Nobel Peace Prize was created in the early 20th Century and is one of the highest achievable honours.

Created by Alfred Nobel, the awards categories reflect his interest in the fields of Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, Peace and Economic Sciences.

Previous winners of the Nobel Peace Prize include former US President Barack Obama, Malala Yousafzai and Nelson Mandela.

The nominations

To be considered for a Nobel Prize you have to be put forward by a "qualified nominator", which includes previous winners, cabinet ministers of national governments, university professors and members of the International Court of Justice.

This year, a total of 287 candidates have been nominated - 208 individuals and 79 organisations - but the Norwegian Nobel Committee does not share the names of those put forward.

The decision

The five-member committee whittles down hundreds of nominations into a shortlist, which are then considered by the Nobel Institute’s permanent advisers.

The committee will then discuss the candidates, and the advisers' reports, and decide on a winner - which we'll find out this morning.

Jack Grey
Live reporter

Later this morning we will find out who has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.

The nominees are kept under wraps, but the Norwegian Nobel Committee says that more than 200 individuals or organisations have been put forward for consideration.

Last year, Venezuelan opposition leader María Machado became the latest recipient of the prestigious award.

Machado handed her prize to Donald Trump in January after the US captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The Norwegian Nobel Committee said that despite Trump being given the medal Machado is "recorded in history as the recipient of the prize".

The US president has said this week that the committee "have a reputation for maybe not giving it to people like me".

The 2026 Nobel Prizes for medicine, physics and chemistry have already been handed out this week, and Canadian poet Anne Carson won the Nobel Literature Prize on Thursday.

We're expecting the announcement at 10:00 BST (11:00 local time) - you can watch it live right here on this page.