Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado named Nobel Peace Prize winner

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has won the Nobel Peace Prize.

The committee said she had resisted death threats to fight for democracy in opposition to President Nicolas Maduro – widely considered a dictator who’s cheated elections.

“When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognise courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist,” it said.

The Nobel committee said Ms Machado had been forced to go into hiding but had stayed in the country, calling it a “choice that has inspired millions of people”.

“Democracy depends on people who refuse to stay silent, who dare to step forward despite grave risk, and who remind us that freedom must never be taken for granted,” it added.

The announcement comes after Donald Trump suggested he’s deserving of the prize.

Speaking at the UN last month, the president commented that “everyone says that I should get the Nobel Peace Prize”.

Wednesday night’s announcement that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of his peace plan increased speculation over a potential win.

But Nina Graeger, director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo, told Sky News it had probably come too late for this year’s award.

However, she said if it led to “a lasting and sustainable peace… the committee would almost certainly have to take that into serious consideration in next year’s deliberations”.

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