Hamas praised the awarding of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to South African jurist Navi Pillay in a statement issued on Friday, citing her role in advancing accusations of genocide against Israel and calling for international legal action against Israeli officials.
The terrorist organization welcomed the Norwegian Nobel Committee's decision to honor Pillay, a former UN high commissioner for human rights who chaired a commission of inquiry that concluded Israel had committed genocide in the Gaza Strip.
In its statement, Hamas described the award as "an important step toward international justice," praising Pillay's involvement in investigating Israel's military operations in Gaza and calling for further international legal action against Israeli officials.
The statement followed the announcement of Pillay as the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, a decision that prompted sharp criticism from Israel's political leadership.
Hamas said the award represented international recognition of what it described as crimes committed by Israel against Palestinians, pointing specifically to the September 2025 findings of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry chaired by Pillay.
The commission's report concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, an allegation rejected by Israel, which has maintained that its military operations targeted Hamas following the terrorist organization's October 7, 2023, massacre.
"The findings of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry, which was chaired by Pillay, concerning the crimes committed in the Gaza Strip, as well as the conclusion of its report issued in September 2025 that the crime of genocide had been committed, underscore the gravity of what our people have endured," Hamas said.
The terrorist organization called on the international community to pursue Israeli officials through international courts, demanding an end to what it characterized as impunity for alleged war crimes.
UN inquiry into Gaza genocide allegations
The controversy surrounding Pillay stems in part from a September 2025 UN commission report, which determined that Israel had committed four of the five acts of genocide defined by the 1948 Genocide Convention. The commission alleged that Israeli actions demonstrated an intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza.
The commission, established in 2021, was tasked with investigating alleged violations of international law in Israel and the Palestinian territories. Pillay chaired the panel alongside commissioners Chris Sidoti and Miloon Kothari.
Israel rejected the findings, accusing the commission of relying on inaccurate information and failing to adequately account for Hamas's conduct during the war. The Foreign Ministry denounced the report as fabricated and accused its authors of acting as proxies for Hamas.
The war began when Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting more than 250 others into Gaza. The massacre triggered Israel's military campaign against the terrorist organization.
Pillay, who previously served as president of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and as a judge at the International Criminal Court, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her broader career advancing international law and accountability for international crimes.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee said its decision recognized her efforts to promote peace and international legal principles, rather than specifically endorsing the conclusions of her Gaza investigation.
Hamas, however, placed the commission's allegations against Israel at the center of its response, using the Nobel announcement to renew its demands for international legal proceedings against Israeli officials.
In its statement, the terrorist organization also praised Pillay's earlier work defending anti-apartheid activists in South Africa and her service on international tribunals, presenting those roles alongside her involvement in the Gaza inquiry.
Herzog condemns Nobel decision as 'moral erosion'
President Isaac Herzog sharply criticized the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Pillay during a ceremony honoring Israel Bonds on Monday, describing the decision as an "affront to any life-affirming, peace-loving people."
According to remarks covered on Tuesday, Herzog condemned the Nobel Committee for recognizing Pillay, whom he accused of advancing false allegations against Israel.
"Awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to one of the leading proponents of the genocide lie is a cynical decision which celebrates a shameful display of moral erosion," Herzog said.
His remarks came amid broader criticism from Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who accused Pillay of spreading false accusations against the Jewish state.
"The Nobel Prize committee has lost its moral compass," the Prime Minister's Office said in response to the announcement.
"It has awarded its highest honor to a bigot who built her career around inventing and propagating blood libels against the only Jewish state."
The contrasting responses highlighted the dispute surrounding Pillay's work, with Hamas explicitly endorsing the UN investigation's findings while Israeli leaders rejected both the report's conclusions and the Nobel Committee's decision to recognize its former chairwoman.
Hamas concluded its statement by renewing its call for international action against Israeli officials accused of crimes in Gaza.