The 2026 Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, aĀ prestigious award that honorsĀ individuals who contributeĀ to the realization ofĀ peace through their work, goes toĀ French-British lawyer and author Philippe Sands, the prize’s board of trustees announced on Thursday.
“In his literary work, which is distinguished both by narrative brilliance and historical depth, Philippe Sands devotes as much attention to the motives of the perpetrators as to the suffering and lives of the victims,” the jury noted in its statement.Ā “At the heart of his legal work is a commitment to the universal rights of every human being, evidenced in his advocacy for victims of war crimes, racism, torture and colonial injustice.”
More than a chronicler of crimes and violations of international law,Ā Sands is also aĀ prominent figure in the campaignĀ advocating for the recognition of ecocide as an international crime.Ā Ā
A family history leading to a life devoted to justice
Born on 17 October 1960 in London, Sands completed his law studies at the University of Cambridge in 1983.Ā He soon established himself as a highly sought-after expert in international law.
As theĀ descendant ofĀ Holocaust survivors,Ā heĀ hasĀ drawnĀ on his own family history to trace the emergence of the body of law that led toĀ the legal concepts ofĀ genocideĀ and crimes against humanity.
His 2016 historicalĀ memoir, “East West Street: On the Origins of Genocide and Crimes against Humanity,” examines the lives of theĀ two Jewish lawyers who established these concepts in the aftermath of World War II.Ā It has been translated into more than 30 languages.
In more than two dozen cases to date, SandsĀ hasĀ appearedĀ as counsel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.
He has represented at the ICJĀ the Solomon Islands in proceedings concerning the threat and use of nuclear weapons; Georgia in its dispute with Russia over the South Ossetia conflict; andĀ Croatia in its genocide claim against Serbia.Ā
During the 2024 ICJ public hearings regarding the legal consequences of Israel’s policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, he argued forĀ Palestinian statehood and the inherent right to self-determination.
He is currently acting for The Gambia, in its ICJ case against Myanmar, which isĀ charged of havingĀ committed genocide against the Rohingya Muslims.
Bestselling non-fiction books inspired by landmark cases
Sands wasĀ closely involved in the historic 1998 arrest of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. In a landmark legal case,Ā heĀ argued against Pinochet’s immunity. The case’s ruling, which fundamentally reshaped international law,Ā established that former heads of state do not have absolute immunity for international crimes.
In Sands’ 2025 non-fiction work, “38 Londres Street: On Impunity, Pinochet in England and a Nazi in Patagonia,” he revisits the ties between Pinochet andĀ Nazi commander Walther Rauff, who helpedĀ create the Chilean internal security apparatus during the military dictatorship, and the attempted extraditions of the two men.
Sands also drew from another of one his casesĀ in his book “The Last Colony: A Tale of Exile, Justice and Britainā€™s Colonial Legacy,” published in 2022, which looks into how at the end of the 1960sĀ ā€”Ā amidĀ unprecedented changes seeking to end the impactĀ of colonialismĀ ā€”Ā the inhabitants of an islandĀ of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean were forced to leave their homeland toĀ create a new colony, the “British Indian Ocean Territory.” The Government of Mauritius is still fighting toĀ gain control over the Chagos Archipelago.
Sands was also a leading figure among the legal scholars who, in the early 2020s, developedĀ the concept of ecocide. Drawing on the principles of international criminal law, they argued that serious, large-scale environmental destruction should be recognized as an international crime in its own right and be prosecuted accordingly.Ā
He has since beenĀ campaigningĀ for the recognition of ecocide as a crime under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, in order to make it the fifth core international crimeĀ alongside the four established ones:Ā genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimesĀ and the crime of aggression.
Peace Prize winners include Salman Rushdie
The Peace Prize of the German Book Trade carries a prize of ā‚¬25,000 ($28,382), and isĀ traditionally presented at the end of the Frankfurt Book Fair, held this yearĀ from October 7 to 11.
The German Publishers and Booksellers Association ā€”Ā the professional organization representing the trade ā€”Ā has been awardingĀ the prize since 1950.Ā
Last year, the accoladeĀ went to historian Karl Schlƶgel, and it was awarded to Anne Applebaum in 2024.
Notable past winnersĀ includeĀ Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood,Ā Svetlana Alexievich and Mario Vargas Llosa.
Edited by: Sarah Hucal