An Iranian presidential aide on Friday ridiculed US President Donald Trump’s failed bid for the Nobel Peace Prize, saying his record of militarism and complicity in Israeli "genocide" in Gaza belied any claim to peace.
“He turned the US Department of Defense into the Department of War, believed in 'peace through strength,' launched a direct military attack on Iran’s monitored nuclear facilities, is now preparing for war with Venezuela, and gave the Israeli regime a free hand in the historic genocide in Gaza — yet he still expected to receive the Nobel Peace Prize,” Abbas Mousavi, deputy chief of staff to Iran’s president, wrote on X.
"From today on, may God have mercy on the world—this modern-day Don Quixote will probably not even bother pretending to be a peacemaker!" he added.
In August, Mousavi, faced criticism from hardliners in Tehran for addressing the US president as "Dear Mr. Trump" during a televised interview.
Iran's hardliners excoriated him for overlooking that Trump ordered the assassination of powerful Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in 2020.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the 2025 Peace Prize to María Corina Machado on Friday “for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
The 58-year-old opposition leader, who remains in hiding, has been barred by Venezuelan authorities from running for office against President Nicolás Maduro.
In a message on X, Machado said her movement was “on the threshold of victory” and counted on “President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world” as allies in the fight for “freedom and democracy.”
"I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!"
Trump, who has long spoken publicly about his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize, has received several nominations over the years, including one this year from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“In a period of just seven months, I have ended seven ‘un-endable’ wars,” Trump said during his address to the United Nations General Assembly last month. “No president or prime minister — and for that matter, no other country — has ever done anything close to that.”
He raised the count to eight during a press conference on Thursday, adding the Gaza ceasefire announced Wednesday to his list.
The White House's communications director lamented the Nobel committee's decision, saying the "Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace".
Trump, Steven Cheung wrote on X, "will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives".
