Chemical Weapons Watchdog Grabs Nobel Peace Prize

World | October 11, 2013, Friday // 12:44|  views

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is the winner of the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize. File photo

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the decision at a press conference held in Oslo Friday morning, saying it chose the OPCW "for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons."

One hour before the official ceremony, Norwegian broadcaster NRK informed that OPCW is the surprise winner of the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.

The media group correctly reported ahead of last year's award that the prize would be won by the European Union.

NRK, which has a successful track record of revealing winners before the official announcement, did not identify the source of its reporting.

OPCW was founded in 1997 to sustain the international Chemical Weapons Convention. It is based in The Hague, Netherlands.

In 2013, OPCW sent a team of experts to Syria to probe chemical weapon attacks against civilians, suspected to have been launched by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Syria agreed to sign the Chemical Weapons Convention and open its arsenal for inspection, which helped avoiding US military intervention. Inspectors began overseeing the destruction of Assad's stockpiles last week.

However, the Nobel Committee stressed the OPCW had not been given the peace prize for Syria, but for its overall work.

This year's record list of 259 nominees was kept secret until Friday.

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Tags: OPCW, Bashar Al-Assad, Syria, Norwegian Nobel Committee, Nobel Peace Prize, Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons

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