Nobel Peace Prize 2017: Nuclear disarmament group ICAN win prestigious accolade

The International Campaign To Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) was presented the accolade on Friday morning.

It was rewarded for its awareness-raising work aiming at getting rid of atomic weapons. 

Berit Reiss-Andersen, Norway’s Nobel committee president, said: “The organisation is receiving the award for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons”. 

The Nobel committee’s choice has fallen on the ICAN in a moment of great tension between the USA and North Korea.

ICAN’s leader Beatrice Fihn said to be “delighted” to having received the prize. 

Addressing her speech to US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un she added: “Nuclear weapons are illegal. 

“Threatening to use nuclear weapons is illegal. 

“Having nuclear weapons, possessing nuclear weapons, developing nuclear weapons, is illegal, and they need to stop.”

ICAN was founded in Vienna in 2007. In the last 10 years it organised campaigns joined even by celebrities interested in its cause. 

The Nobel committee said ICAN “has been a driving force in prevailing upon the world’s nations to pledge to cooperate… in efforts to stigmatise, prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons”. 

The Nobel Peace Prize consists of a gold medal, a diploma and a cheque for nine million Swedish kronor (£845,000). 

ICAN will receive it during a ceremony taking place in Oslo on December 10, the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel, the prize’s creator.

ICAN was just one of the over 300 nominees considered by the Norwegian committee for this year’s award. 

The Nobel Peace Prize announcement culminated a week of accolades given to outstanding personalities and organisations in medicine, physics, chemistry and literature.