Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado recently expressed strong support for Israel’s actions in its war against Hamas, the Prime Minister's Office said Friday.
In a phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Machado commended Israel’s decisive actions against Hamas in Gaza and its broader efforts to combat the Iranian axis, which she noted poses a threat not only to Israel but also to the people of Venezuela.
Machado also congratulated Netanyahu on the agreement for the release of hostages from Gaza.
In return, Netanyahu praised Machado’s efforts for democracy and her dedication to expanding global peace, congratulating her on her Nobel Peace Prize win.
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for fighting dictatorship in the country and dedicated the award in part to US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly insisted he deserved it.
Machado, a 58-year-old industrial engineer who lives in hiding, was blocked in 2024 by Venezuela's courts from running for president and thus challenging President Nicolas Maduro, who has been in power since 2013.
"Oh my God ... I have no words," Machado told the secretary of the award body, Kristian Berg Harpviken, in a phone call which the Nobel Committee posted on social media.
"I thank you so much, but I hope you understand this is a movement, this is an achievement of a whole society. I am just one person. I certainly do not deserve it," she added.
She later said, in an X post in English: "I dedicate the prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!"
Trump is a fierce critic of Maduro, and the US is one of a number of countries that do not recognize his government's legitimacy.
White House criticizes Nobel committee's decision
The White House had earlier criticized the Norwegian Nobel Committee's decision to focus on Venezuela just days after Trump announced a breakthrough in talks to halt the fighting in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
"President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives... The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace," White House spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a post on X.
Maduro, whose 12 years in office have been marked by deep economic and social crisis, was sworn in for a third term in January this year, despite a six-month-long election dispute, international calls for him to stand aside and an increase in the US reward offered for his capture.
"When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist," the Nobel Committee said in its citation.
Marco Rubio, now Trump's secretary of state, nominated Machado for the Peace Prize together with a group of US members of Congress in August 2024, when he was still a senator.
Machado is the first Venezuelan to win the Nobel Peace Prize and the sixth from Latin America. Her three adult children are living abroad for safety reasons.
The United Nations human rights office welcomed the award to Machado as a recognition of "the clear aspirations of the people of Venezuela for free and fair elections."
The head of the award committee, Joergen Watne Frydnes, said he hoped it would spur the Venezuelan opposition's work.
"We hope that the entire opposition will have renewed energy to continue the work for a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy," Frydnes told Reuters after the announcement.
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.