Belen Fernandez July 12, 2025
International politics has ceased to amaze, with absurdities becoming a routine occurrence. The latest surreal episode features Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nominating U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The irony is staggering. Netanyahu, the man leading the ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, nominates Trump—the primary supporter of this very genocide—for the world’s most prestigious peace award.
Last March, Trump declared his full support for Israel, pledging to provide “whatever it takes” for Israel to complete its operations in Gaza. That “whatever” includes billions of dollars in lethal weaponry and other aid. Since October 2023, approximately 60,000 Palestinians have officially been recorded as killed in Gaza. The actual death toll, including those still buried beneath rubble, is unknown.
Remarkably, global media outlets report Trump’s Nobel nomination with seriousness. CNN, for example, noted that receiving this award has become Trump’s “ultimate ambition,” believing himself deserving due to his efforts in “ending global conflicts.”
Trump was informed of his nomination last Monday, coinciding with Netanyahu’s third visit to Washington this year. At a White House dinner that evening, Trump expressed gratitude to Netanyahu, remarking, “Wow…especially coming from you, this means a lot.”
Hearing Netanyahu nominate Trump and Trump’s earnest acceptance evokes laughter. Awarding a man implicated in war and genocide with a peace prize seems beyond absurd—it’s grotesquely ironic.
Trump’s justification for the nomination stems from his significant military strike against Iran, a move he positively compared to President Harry Truman’s atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II—events that killed hundreds of thousands of civilians.
In 2009, Barack Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize shortly after assuming office, and subsequently bombed Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Iraq, and Syria—all ironically justified as actions fostering “international brotherhood.”
Other controversial Nobel laureates include former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, notorious for the “False Positives” scandal in which Colombian soldiers murdered nearly 10,000 civilians, labeling them “terrorists.” Yet, Santos once proudly declared his pleasure at Colombia being called “the Israel of Latin America.”
Another recipient, former Israeli leader Shimon Peres, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994, yet, merely two years later, ordered the massacre of 106 refugees in a UN shelter in Qana, Lebanon.
Amid today’s normalization of Palestinian genocide, Trump suggests the U.S. should occupy Gaza, forcibly expel Palestinians, and transform the region into a luxurious “Middle Eastern Riviera.” This shocking proposal further underscores his “qualification” for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The Times of Israel aptly titled its coverage of the Netanyahu-Trump meeting, “Netanyahu’s Surprise: Trump’s Nobel Nomination, Leaders Discuss Gaza Population Transfer.” Netanyahu argued that U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran have “reshaped the Middle East,” potentially expanding the Abraham Accords—a twisted logic equating the complete erasure of Palestine with fostering international harmony.
When Trump likens his Iranian attack to the atomic bombing of Japanese cities positively, it becomes evident that such a mindset fundamentally contradicts any notion of peace. Yet, in today’s world, where wars are routinely waged in the name of “peace,” perhaps Trump’s nomination is tragically fitting.
● Belen Fernandez is a journalist and author.
