Støre rejects Israel's criticism of Nobel Peace Prize award to Navi Pillay
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre distanced himself from Israel's harsh reaction after Navi Pillay received the Nobel Peace Prize, calling the comparison to Nazis unfounded.
After the Nobel Committee announced Navi Pillay as this year's Peace Prize laureate, Israel's foreign ministry issued a forceful statement on X. In an interview, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said he does not endorse the Israeli comparison of the award to Nazi propaganda and that such coloring does not hold up. He highlighted Pillay's decades of dedication to international justice, mentioning her leadership of a UN inquiry that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza and her tenure as a judge at the International Criminal Court.
Støre argued that questioning the Nobel Committee's decision is a normal part of democratic discourse. He stressed that while people may disagree with Pillay's conclusions, the Nazi analogy is unacceptable.
Why it matters
The exchange shows tension between Norway and Israel over the Nobel Peace Prize and highlights debates on international justice.
How this story developed
- Sep 28 Mark Carney overtakes Donald Trump in Nobel Peace Prize betting odds
- Oct 3 The United States has imposed 50 % tariffs on certain Canadian goods.
- Oct 7 The Norwegian Nobel Committee reports a sharp rise in hostile messages and intense public scrutiny as it prepares to announce the 2026 Peace Prize.
- Oct 7 Prediction markets now list Carney with double‑digit odds, while Trump’s odds have fallen to near zero.
- Oct 9 Sources say the United States will unveil sanctions that aim to cripple the ICC by prohibiting American firms and citizens from providing money, goods or services to the court. The measures would expand previous actions that targeted individual judges to a full blockade. The Netherlands, which hosts the ICC, is consulting with Brussels and weighing a principled rebuttal against possible economic retaliation. Within the EU, the European Commission remains cautious, with its president urging diplomatic handling.
- Oct 9 Today Navi Pillay is a judge on the International Court of Justice in the case where Myanmar stands accused of genocide.
- Oct 9 The Nobel Committee scheduled the 2026 Peace Prize announcement for Oct 9 at 11 a.m. local time in Oslo.
- Oct 9 The White House scheduled to announce the sanctions on Friday.
- Oct 10 Trump claimed at a Syracuse rally that he deserves eight Nobel Peace Prizes and labeled the committee’s decision an embarrassment for Norway.
- Oct 10 ICC president Tomoko Akane issued a video urging member states to defend the court.
- Oct 10 The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced Pillay as laureate, citing her leadership of UN‑backed inquiries into contentious legal issues.
- Oct 10 EU urged the United States to reverse the sanctions
- Oct 11 The Nobel Institute opened a leak investigation after a betting surge on Polymarket.
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