Highlights: Nobel Peace Prize 2017 awarded to International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

5.10 pm: The Norwegian Nobel committee said that while giving the Peace prize the intention was neither to rebuke Donald Trump nor to snub the architects of the Iran nuclear deal, reports Reuters

4.28 pm: The world’s nuclear powers must begin “serious negotiations” aimed at disarmament, the Nobel committee said an Friday, reports AFP.

4.15 pm: Nobel win for ICAN ‘a good omen’ for nuclear ban treaty’s ratification: United Nations, reports AFP.

3.40 pm: “Nuclear weapons are illegal” ICAN Executive Director Beatrice Fihn’s message to Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, reports Reuters.

3.26 pm: “The government supports the goal of a world without nuclear weapons and congratulates the Nobel Prize committee on this choice,” said a government spokesperson in Berlin, as reported by Reuters.

3.23 pm: Germany lauds the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)- Reuters

3.10 pm: Read | What is the ICAN?

2.50 pm: In case you missed it: the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2017. The Norwegian Nobel Committee, which decides the winner, said it is being awarded at a time when the risk of nuclear conflict is greater than before. “We live in a world where the risk of nuclear weapons being used is greater than it has been for a long time. Some states are modernising their nuclear arsenals, and there is a real danger that more countries will try to procure nuclear weapons.”

In July, 122 nations adopted the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. However, nuclear-armed states including the US, Russia, China, Britain and France skipped the talks, reports AP.

The prize comes at a time of heightened nuclear tension between the US and North Korea as well as uncertainty over the fate of a 2015 deal signed by Iran and major powers to limit Tehran’s nuclear programme.

2.46 pm: The press conference has concluded. The Speaker says ICAN has just been informed that it has won the Peace Prize.

2.45 pm: On a side note, ICAN’s website seems to be down.

2.42 pm: The speaker says the committee is sending a message to all states, but in particular to the nuclear-enabled ones. “The message we are sending is to remind them of the commitment that they have already made; they are obliged to work for a nuclear free world.”

2.40 pm: When asked if the Committee considered sharing the prize this year, the speaker says there are many organisations and individuals in this field. “This year’s prize is a tribute to everyone working towards disarmament,” she says. “ICAN has taken a leading role in this process and engaging people of the world.”

2.38 pm: “There is a popular belief that the world has become more dangerous. The threat of nuclear conflict has come closer,” the speaker of the committee adds.

2.35 pm: “The message is that this year’s prize is an encouragement to continue their obligations under the non-proliferation treaty where they have committed to the goal of a nuclear-free world. We hope that with this year’s prize, we can support the efforts that ICAN has made in given new momentum to the disarmament debate,” the committee says.

BREAKING NEWS The 2017 Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) @nuclearban #NobelPrize pic.twitter.com/I5PUiQfFzs

— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 6, 2017

2.30 pm: The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 is The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).

“ICAN has in the past year given the efforts to achieve a world without nuclear weapons a new direction and new vigour,” the committee in its announcement.

“ICAN is a coalition of non-governmental organizations from around 100 different countries around the globe. CAN has been the leading civil society actor in the effort to achieve a prohibition of nuclear weapons under international law. The Nobel Committee emphasizes that the next step towards attaining a world free of nuclear weapons must involve the nuclear-armed states,” the official handle of the Peace Prize tweeted.

2.12 pm: In 2016, the prize was awarded to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos “for his resolute efforts to bring the country’s more than 50-year-long civil war to an end”. He had helped negotiations between the government and FARC guerrillas, which resulted in a ceasefire in 2016.

1.35 pm: In less than an hour now the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will be announced. In the last week, the winners of the Nobel Prizes for Chemistry, Physics and Literature have been announced. On October 9, the winner of the Nobel Prize for Economics will be announced.

1.15 pm: The Nobel Prize was not awarded on 19 occasions. Any guesses why?

According to the statutes of the Nobel Foundation: “If none of the works under consideration is found to be of the importance indicated in the first paragraph, the prize money shall be reserved until the following year.” In 1914-1916, 1918, 1923, 1924, 1928, 1932, 1939-1943, 1948, 1955-1956, 1966-1967 and 1972, the prizes weren’t awarded. If you notice, fewer or none were awarded during the World Wars.

12.47 pm: Did you know? Alfred Nobel, in his will, left the largest share of his fortune for the Nobel Prizes. The will said the prize will be awarded to “the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses”.

12.15 pm: Who are the most popular Nobel Laureates? Martin Luther King Jr (1964), Malala Yousafzai (2014), Mother Teresa (1979), Jane Addams (1931) and Elie Wiesel (1986) top the list, according to the official website of the Nobel Peace Prize. Try to spot some of the names you know in this complete list.

11.45 am: Who were the initial winners of the Nobel Peace Prize? Since its inception? Here are the first ten winners of the Nobel Peace Prize since 1901.

11.15 am: Here’s a breakup of nominations world wise and the number of Nobel Peace Prizes awarded:

International Organisations – 690 nominations, 20 Nobel Peace Prizes. Western Europe – 1694 nominations, 44 Nobel Peace Prizes. Eastern Europe 323 nominations, 3 Nobel Peace Prizes. North America – 964 nominations, 19 Nobel Peace Prizes. Latin America – 345 nominations, 5 Nobel Peace Prizes. Asia – 677 nominations, 12 Nobel Peace Prizes. Africa – 164 nominations, 6 Nobel Peace Prizes.

11.oo am: Who are the likely nominees this year? While the names of the nominees are not revealed for 50 years, there are organisations who speculate on who the likely nominees are. We’ve combined a list of likely nominees from across fields. Do read about them.

10.15 am: How many nominations did the committee recieve last year? 376 valid nominations of different individuals and organisations were recieved for the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. 148 of these were organisations, and 228 persons. The Nobel Committees in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and the Committee in Economic Sciences each usually receives 250-300 names every year.

10.00 am: The Nobel Peace Prize 2017 will be announced in about four hours from now. While you’re waiting to know who will be the winner this year, why not indulge in a cool Peace game? The Nobel Committee has put out the Peace Dove Nuclear Weapon game. Give it a shot here (http://bit.ly/2y4Kz2n) Don’t forget to tell us in the comment section how well (or poorly) you’ve done.

9.45 am: Has anyone declined the Nobel Peace Prize? Yes. Vietnamese politician Le Duc Tho, who was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize jointly with US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, is the only person who has declined the Nobel Peace Prize. The duo were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the Vietnam peace accord. Le Doc Tho, according to the Nobel Prize committee, said that he was not in a position to accept the Nobel Prize, citing the situation in Vietnam as his reason.

9.30 am: Is it possible to revoke a Nobel Peace Prize? According Olav Njølstad, Director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, no. Neither Alfred Nobel’s will nor the Statutes of the Nobel Foundation mention any such possibility, he says. Moreover, none of the prize awarding committees in Stockholm and Oslo has ever considered to revoke a prize once awarded.

9.15 am: More trivia! According to the Alfred Nobel Memorial Foundation, Alfred Nobel has left no explanation as to why the Peace Prize was to be awarded by a Norwegian committee while the other four prizes were to be handled by Swedish committees.

8. 55 am: The average age of a Nobel Peace Prize winner is 62. The youngest Nobel Peace Prize Laureate is Malala Yousafzai, who was 17 years old when awarded the 2014 Peace Prize. The oldest Nobel Peace Prize Laureate to date is Joseph Rotblat, who was 87 years old when he was awarded the Prize in 1995.

8.30 am: Did you know? There have been three Nobel Peace Prize Laureates who were under arrest at the time they were declared winners of the Prize. These are: German pacifist and journalist Carl von Ossietzky, Burmese politician and now Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo.

8.15 am: To begin with, here are some facts about the Nobel Peace Prize. Since its inception in 1901, 97 Nobel Peace Prizes have been awarded to 130 Laureates until 2016. Of these, 16 have been women. Sixty six Nobel Peace Prizes have been awarded to one Laureate only.