Trump Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize by Netanyahu: Could Be the Final Nail in the Coffin for the Award’s Credibility?

In what many are calling a dark and ironic twist in global diplomacy, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—currently facing an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant for alleged war crimes in Gaza, which experts and human rights watchdogs have called genocidal —has nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. The move, announced Monday, reignites not only political controversy but also a searing question: Has the Nobel Peace Prize lost all meaning?

Donald Trump, who U.S. Republicans have previously nominated and a handful of European lawmakers nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, received a formal letter of recommendation from Benjamin Netanyahu, handed to him personally. This letter marks the beginning of a secretive, decades-long nomination process. Still, Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to publicize the Trump Nobel Peace prize nomination has already sparked international backlash—the perfect game of pleasing the emperor when the emperor is naked, in this case, so are his supporters?

Adding fuel to the fire, Pakistan also recently submitted its own nomination for Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, citing his claimed role in de-escalating recent tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi. Both endorsements—from nuclear-armed states embroiled in conflict and led by controversial figures—have triggered widespread condemnation. However, India has denied any intervention and contested Trump’s role in any way.

A Legacy in Jeopardy

For many, this nomination isn’t just controversial—it’s catastrophic.

The Nobel Peace Prize, once a symbol of global hope and moral courage, is now staring down a credibility crisis. The nomination of a man like Donald Trump—known more for inflammatory rhetoric, border walls, and climate denial than peacebuilding—by a head of state under investigation for war crimes may be the moment it becomes a parody of itself. Only recently, Donald Trump was heard talking about ‘Aligator Alcatraz’, a new detention centre he plans to open in Florida’s swamp land with a 3000 detainee capacity. The humour and relishing in the announcement of how the detainees, if trying to escape, would meet Alligators, Snakes, etc., was a lack of basic moral tenets, and in no way is it peace.

“If this is peace, then the word has no meaning,” one international human rights observer tweeted shortly after the announcement.

And the Nobel Committee’s own statutes—requiring that the award go to someone who has “done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations”—now feel like a relic of a more principled past.

A Deepening Double Standard

The bitter irony isn’t lost on many that Mahatma Gandhi, history’s global icon of nonviolent resistance, was never awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, despite being nominated 12 times. Meanwhile, Benjamin Netanyahu, who stands accused by the ICC of overseeing the killing of civilians and blockade of humanitarian aid, is attempting to elevate Donald Trump, his buddy, a divisive figure who sowed global instability, with a prize meant to honour peace.

India’s Congress party called the move “bizarre,” citing past omissions, such as those of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, and invoking the controversial 1973 award to Henry Kissinger as a comparison. But many argue this moment marks a new low, because of who’s doing the nominating and who’s being nominated.

The Death of Respect?

The real danger isn’t just Netanyahu‘s Donald Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize nomination—it’s what this tells the world about the erosion of global moral standards. If a Nobel Peace Prize can be weaponized by the powerful to whitewash legacies, then the institution itself risks being viewed as a hollow honor rather than a beacon of peace.

And if Donald Trump wins with backers like Benjamin Netanyahu? It may be the moment the Nobel Peace Prize loses its last shred of legitimacy. And Mahatma Gandhi never needed it, but the fact that it hasn’t been shows the understanding of peace. 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the publication