Recognising the contribution of international courts in upholding the rule of law and human rights amid indiscriminate conflicts, Indian-origin South African jurist Navanethem "Navi" Pillay, a former International Criminal Court judge and who investigated genocide claims in Rwanda, the occupied Palestinian territories, and Myanmar, was on Friday awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 

Hailing from a family of Indian Tamil descent in Durban, Pillay, 85, who became the first non-white woman judge of the High Court of South Africa, has been awarded the prize "for her efforts to promote peace and international law".