EU lawmakers nominate Snowden for Sakharov human rights prize
Members of the European Parliament have officially nominated whistleblower and former CIA employee Edward Snowden for the prestigious prize, which celebrates freedom of thought. ● Edward Snowden "deserves to be honored for shedding light on the systematic infringements of civil liberties by US and European secret services," leaders of the parliament's Greens group Daniel Cohn-Bendit and Rebecca Harms said in a statement. "Snowden has risked his freedom to help us protect ours." Snowden, a computer specialist and former contractor for the US National Security Agency (NSA), was the focus of an international manhunt during the summer after he leaked classified files of US government and UK surveillance programs, including spying on their closest allies, to the media.