Tsikhanouskaya, Navalny Among More Than 300 Nominees For Nobel Peace Prize

Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Russian anti-corruption campaigner Aleksei Navalny (composite file photo)

The Norwegian Nobel Committee says it has received 329 nominations for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.

The Oslo-based organization said that it was the third-highest number of candidates ever. The record of 376 candidates was reached in 2016.

This year's total includes 234 individuals and 95 organizations.

"It reflects a lot of international interest in the Nobel Peace Prize," said Norwegian Nobel Committee Secretary Olav Njoelstad. "It probably also reflects that there are a number of unsolved conflicts, wars, and human rights problems around the world."

The committee does not reveal who is nominated. But nominators, who range from politicians to former winners, can choose to reveal their choices.

Those known to be on the list include Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, as well as Russian anti-corruption campaigner and Kremlin foe Aleksei Navalny.

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and U.S. politician and voting rights activist Stacey Abrams are among the other nominees for the 2021 prize.

The list also includes ex-U.S. president Donald Trump; his son-in-law, Jared Kushner; and Kushner's White House deputy, Avi Berkowitz, for their roles in brokering agreement to normalize relations between Israel and several Arab countries.

The organizations nominated include the World Health Organization, the International Fact-Checking Network, and media watchdogs Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

The 2021 laureate will be announced in October.

The World Food Program was awarded last year's prize.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, and AP