Key facts
- The Nobel Peace Prize winner will be announced on Friday.
- Martin Luther King Jr. was the youngest winner at 35 at the time of his award.
- Malala Yousafzai is currently the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate at 17.
- Nelson Mandela and Frederik Willem de Klerk shared the 1993 prize.
- Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho were awarded the 1973 prize, with Le Duc Tho refusing it.
- Mahatma Gandhi was never awarded the Nobel Peace Prize despite being considered multiple times.
The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday, with a history of both celebrated and controversial recipients. Past laureates include civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., recognized for his non-violent struggle, and Nelson Mandela, who received the award in 1993 for his role in South Africa's transition to democracy.
The 1973 award to U.S. diplomat Henry Kissinger and North Vietnam's Le Duc Tho for the Paris Peace Accords was highly controversial, with Kissinger playing a significant role in the Vietnam War and Le Duc Tho refusing the prize. Aung San Suu Kyi, honored for her non-violent fight for democracy in Myanmar, later faced criticism for her response to the military's actions against the Rohingya minority.
Mahatma Gandhi, a prominent advocate for non-violence, was considered for the prize on five occasions but never received it. According to former committee secretary Geir Lundestad, potential reasons included not wanting to offend Britain, the former colonial power in India, or perceptions of Gandhi's politics as "anti-modern" by a Europe-centric committee. The violence during India's partition may have also been a factor.
Malala Yousafzai holds the record as the youngest laureate, receiving the prize at age 17 in 2014.