Chemical watchdog Nobel Prize

Malala Yousafzai, who had been favourite to land the Nobel Peace Prize, has issued a statement congratulating the eventual winners and thanking her supporters.

The OPCW (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons), the body overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons, earlier landed the prestigious award.

The statement from the Pakistani schoolgirl, who has continued to campaign for education after being shot by the Taliban, read:

US Secretary of State John Kerry has praised the work of the Organisation of the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, who beat favourites Malala Yousafzai to win the Nobel Prize for Peace. In a statement, Mr Kerry said:

"I want to congratulate the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for winning the Nobel Prize. The world will never forget the loss of the more than 1,000 innocent Syrians senselessly killed with chemical weapons on Aug. 21.

"There could be no more stark reminder why for almost 100 years, the international community has deemed the use of these weapons far beyond the bounds of acceptable conduct.

"Since that horrific attack, the OPCW has taken extraordinary steps and worked with unprecedented speed to address this blatant violation of international norms that shocked the conscience of people around the world."

The body overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons arsenal have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Committee announced.

The Hague-based OPCW was awarded the accolade for its "overall efforts" to rid the world of chemical weapons.

The group are responsible for implementing the Chemical Weapons Convention, entered into force in 1997. Their website says their role is that of "preventing chemistry from ever being used again for warfare."

Pakistani schoolgirl campaigner Malala Yousafzai and gynaecologist Denis Mukwege of the Democratic Republic of Congo had been tipped as favourites to take the award.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it has awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace to the OPCW, as it wants to contribute to the continuation of the elimination of the world's chemical arsenal.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has won the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.

Read: Who are the OPCW tipped to win the Nobel Prize?

Norwegian state broadcaster NRK said the global chemical weapons watchdog, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the (OPCW), is tipped to win this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Last year, the state broadcaster correctly leaked that the European Union was the winner.

The OPCW, based in The Hague, is currently working to disarm the forces of Syrian president Assad, following the chemical attack in Damascus on August 21. Here is how they explain what they do.

More: First independent images of alleged chemical attack in Syria emerge

Norwegian public broadcaster NRK says global chemical weapons watchdog, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is tipped to win this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Malala Yousafzai has expressed her desire to become her country's prime minister.

The 16-year-old Pakistani girl made her comments in an interview with CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour. Asked if she wanted to be a doctor or a politician, she said she had initially wanted to be a doctor, but had learned she could help people more as prime minister. She said:

"I can spend much of the budget on education."

A Pakistani schoolgirl shot by the Taliban for championing girls' right to education is widely tipped to receive the world's top peace award later.

Malala Yousafzai is among the favourites to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, with the winner due to be announced by the Nobel Committee in Oslo, Norway.

The award process is shrouded in secrecy and nominations cannot be published for 50 years, but a global campaign petitioning for Malala to be short-listed attracted more than half a million signatures.