Navi Pillay, the winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize and a former UN human rights chief, has publicly criticized the United States for imposing new sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC). Speaking via video link from Nuremberg during an event at the Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo on Saturday, the 85-year-old South African lawyer described the move as "unheard of" and "unacceptable."
Pillay, who once served as a judge on the ICC, expressed deep concern regarding the pressure placed on international institutions. "There is so much tension and anxiety over the continued existence of international courts, mainly the International Criminal Court in The Hague," she stated. She further highlighted the plight of court personnel, noting that "there are hundreds of staff who feel they are under threat." Regarding the US decision to target judges for their legal rulings, she reiterated that such actions are unprecedented.
The criticism follows the Norwegian Nobel Committee's announcement on Friday naming Pillay as this year's laureate. Her selection has drawn condemnation from both the United States and Israel. Shortly after the announcement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that Washington would ban all transactions with the "rogue court," marking an escalation in the US administration's long-term opposition to the tribunal.
In response, the ICC rejected the sanctions as an attack on international law, warning that "history will judge this moment." Beyond her tenure at the ICC, Pillay served as the UN high commissioner for human rights from 2008 to 2014 and led the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry, which concluded last year that genocide was occurring in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized the Nobel committee for honoring a "bigot," while US President Donald Trump characterized the committee's decision as "a disgraceful and embarrassing" move, adding at a rally in Syracuse, New York, that he had "never heard of" the laureate.
