Professor Muhammad Yunus on Friday congratulated Judge Navi Pillay on being awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, recognising her lifelong commitment to justice, human rights and accountability.

“I warmly congratulate Judge Navi Pillay on being awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize. Judge Pillay has given her life to justice. Her work against apartheid, at the United Nations and on the international bench has shown that peace cannot last without the rule of law,” he said in a statement.

He said Pillay held the powerful to account and stood with those who have no voice.

“This prize honours her courage and integrity. It is also a reminder that justice and peace belong together. I extend my best wishes to her.”

Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, a former United Nations human rights chief and judge at the International Court of Justice, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for her efforts to advance peace and international law.

Announcing the award in Oslo, Norwegian Nobel Committee Chair Jørgen Watne Frydnes said the South African-born Pillay, 85, had made significant contributions to promoting peace and justice worldwide.

Her work “is a source of hope and inspiration to all those who seek to bring about a more peaceful world,” he said.

Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank were jointly awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to “create economic and social development from below”.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian Nobel Committee received 287 nominations for this year's prize, slightly more than a quarter of them organisations.

Last year, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado received the Nobel Peace Prize for her campaign for a democratic transition in Venezuela.

Machado later presented her Nobel medal to US President Donald Trump after the United States ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. However, the gesture was largely symbolic, as the Nobel Committee has clarified that the award itself cannot be transferred to another person.