[Order Michael Finch’s new book, A Time to Stand: HERE. Prof. Jason Hill calls it “an aesthetic and political tour de force.”]

María Corina Machado has just been awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. It was a good choice. Machado has been a one-woman multitude, for years fighting against the dictatorship of the ruthless Venezuelan dictator, Nicolás Maduro, the successor to another dictator, Hugo Chávez. She is now in hiding in Venezuela, and Maduro wants her head on a platter.

She also has strong views on Israel, but not the sort that will endear her to Zohran Mamdani or Francesca Albanese. She has expressed support for Israeli throughout the war in Gaza. More on her links to Israel can be found here: “Nobel Peace Prize winner Mara Corina Machado supports Israel’s war and Benjamin Netanyahu? Here are the facts,” The Week, October 10, 2025:

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. The former opposition presidential candidate was lauded for being a “key, unifying figure” in the once deeply divided opposition to President Nicolás Maduro’s government, said Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel committee.

“María Corina Machado – awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize – has spent years working for the freedom of the Venezuelan people. The Venezuelan regime’s rigid hold on power and its repression of the population are not unique in the world. We see the same trends globally: rule of law abused by those in control, free media silenced, critics imprisoned, and societies pushed towards authoritarian rule and militarisation. In 2024, more elections were held than ever before, but fewer and fewer are free and fair,” the Nobel Prize further said on X.

However, following the announcement, many have started to point out that the 58-year-old is a strong ally of Israel and openly backs the country’s decision to bomb the largely unarmed civilians of the Gaza Strip. While there is no known evidence to argue that she supported the one-sided attack on the Palestinian civilians, Machado is undoubtedly an ally of Benjamin Netanyahu. In the past, the centrist-right leader had even declared that if she gains power, she will restore diplomatic relations with Israel.

She has also said that if elected, she will not only restore diplomatic relations with Israel, but will also move the Venezuelan Embassy to Jerusalem.

So let the pro-Hamas heathens rage, as a genuine fighter for democracy, who has put her life on the line in her battle against despotism, is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. And don’t let anyone forget María Corina Machado’s steadfast support for Israel.