Winners of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize Announced: Denis Mukwege, Nadia Murad

Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad were jointly announced as the winners of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, October 5. Nadia Murad, a 25-year-old Yazidi woman from Sinjar, Iraq, is considered the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate after Malala Yousafzai. The Nobel Academy stated in a statement that these two winners were deserving of the award "for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence" in war. According to the Nobel Academy, Denis Mukwege from Congo has "dedicated his life to defending victims of sexual violence in war," while Nadia Murad has witnessed this type of violence and has spoken out about the abuse inflicted on herself and other women by ISIS. Denis Mukwege is a gynecologist from Congo. Nadia Murad received the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament in 2016 alongside Lamia Haji Bashar for her efforts to bring the voices of Yazidis to the world. Although the Nobel Academy never announces the names of the nominees in advance, speculation was rife, with the names of two controversial figures, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, the President of the United States and the leader of North Korea, respectively, standing out. According to the Nobel Prize Committee, 331 candidates were reviewed for this award this year: 216 individuals and 115 groups. Shirin Ebadi, a lawyer and human rights advocate, is the only Iranian to have received this award. Last year, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.