Nobel Peace goes to weapons watchdog

A global chemical weapons watchdog based in The Hague has won this year's Nobel Peace Prize. The Norwegian Nobel Committee has handed the award to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) "for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons."

About the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)

• The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an independent, international body set up in 1997 to implement the Chemical Weapons Convention.

• The organisation is presently involved in destroying Syria's stockpiles of chemical weapons - the first time the OPCW has worked in a war zone.

• It carries out inspections of destruction procedures, as well as evaluating members' own declarations, in order to verify that the convention is being adhered to.

• It is based in The Hague, Netherland and has 189 member states, covering around 98 percent of the world's population. These member nations have agreed to work together to create a world free from chemical weapons.

• The OPCW employs around 500 people and has a budget of 75m Euros (102m Dollars, 63m Pounds) in 2010.

•It is an autonomous organisation with a working relationship with the United Nations.

• Ahmet Uzumcu  is the  Present Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to 125 Nobel Laureates since 1901. The 1.25 million Dollar prize will be presented to OPCW at Oslo on 10 December 2013.