Nobel Peace Prize goes to Navi Pillay, former UN human rights chief

South African jurist Navi Pillay, who served as the United Nations' top human rights chief, has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote international law. The 85-year-old Pillay, a former South African judge, chaired a commission that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza, a finding that has drawn criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Her work, which includes leading a panel that found Israel guilty of genocide in Gaza, is being seen as a rebuke to those who reject international law and undermine institutions such as the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. Pillay's win comes at a time of conflict, as the U.N. marks its 125th anniversary.

She stated that efforts to weaken international criminal justice endanger progress made since Nuremberg, where Nazi war criminals were tried. World leaders have a "legal obligation to protect human rights and refrain from war," Pillay added.