AN Irish priest who founded an organisation which helps free Filipino children and women from sex traffickers has missed out on the Nobel Peace Prize for a fourth time.
Fr Shay Cullen, who is originally from Glenageary in Co Dublin, set up the PREDA (Peoples' Recovery Empowerment and Development Assistance Incorporated) Foundation 43 years ago and has dedicated his life since to its work.
The organisation helps to free women and children from brothels and sex traffickers, providing raped and abused victims with shelter and counselling.
The 74-year-old priest started carrying out such work when he was sent to the Philippines as a young missionary during the Vietnam War.
The cleric and PREDA, the headquarters of which is in the Philippines, were nominated for the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize by the German Bundestag Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development.
Speaking after the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (Ican) was named this year's winner, Fr Cullen - who has been nominated four times for the award - said the judges had made a "great choice".
The cleric said he wished for the abolition of "all weapons, not just nuclear weapons" from around the world.
