DOMINANT ANGLE
Jerusalem sees it as follows: the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Navi Pillay is viewed as a reward for the author of a UN investigation into Gaza, and the debate over American sanctions against the ICC takes a back seat.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded on Friday, October 9, to Navi Pillay, who chaired the UN inquiry commission whose September 2025 report concluded there was a genocide in Gaza, an accusation deemed "scandalous" (Jerusalem Post).
- 02
Benjamin Netanyahu condemned this Nobel, stating it had "lost its moral compass" (Arutz Sheva).
- 03
Eight US allies stated they "regret and strongly disapprove" of American sanctions against the ICC, imposed a few hours after the prize announcement (Haaretz).
ANALYSIS
Jérusalem, October 10, 2026. Israel's government is criticizing the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Navi Pillay, who accused Israel of genocide in Gaza: the prize, awarded on Friday, October 9, is first presented through the prism of the UN commission of inquiry she chaired. The government recalls that, in September 2025, this report concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza and that officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had incited these acts, accusations that Israel deemed "scandalous". The Nobel Committee, for its part, cites "her efforts to promote peace and international law" and links her career, from defending Nelson Mandela to her functions as a judge, by "a common thread".
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, judges that the Nobel Peace Prize "has lost its moral compass" and reproaches the laureate for propagating anti-Israeli accusations, while criticizing the Norwegian committee. The dispatch is brief and does not detail the Prime Minister's argumentation.
The second part of the story concerns the United States. According to the Jerusalem Post, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court itself on Friday, just hours after the announcement of the prize, which puts the United States in a situation of "diplomatic collision" with their European allies. Marco Rubio assures that the President "will never allow the ICC to prosecute Americans" and speaks of a "rogue court". The Deputy Prosecutor, Nazhat Shameem Khan, responds that the work will continue. Haaretz specifies that eight US allied countries "regret and strongly disapprove" these sanctions.
The Jerusalem Post also devotes an article to Donald Trump, who attacked the committee during a meeting in Syracuse, judging that the prize should have gone to the United States, and who qualified the laureate as "a UN liberal person nobody has ever heard of". He treats the decision as "an indelible stain" for Norway. The newspaper notes that the commission chaired by Navi Pillay is a body that has sparked sharp criticism in Israel.
The Israeli coverage thus associates three elements: the rejection of the report on Gaza, the contestation of the choice of Oslo by Jerusalem and by Washington, and the front of Western allies of the ICC. Haaretz focuses on the reaction of these allies, while the media closer to the government highlight the criticism of the prize.
SOURCES (3)
- Jerusalem PostMEDIUM
- Arutz ShevaMEDIUM
- Haaretz EnglishMEDIUM
