George Clooney and Don Cheadle are to be honoured for their efforts to bring peace to Darfur.
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The Hollywood stars will be presented with the 2007 Peace Summit Award for their work on behalf of the victims of the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn African region at the 8th World Summit of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, in Rome, Italy, on December 13.
South African cleric Archbishop Desmond Tutu – who is one of a number of former Nobel Prize winners who makes up the group, along with Soviet President Michael Gorbachev, former US President Jimmy Carter and the Dalai Lama – described the actors ‘as an inspiration to us all’.
He added: ‘I am always moved when I see artists such as George and Don use their positions to speak up for the most vulnerable of our fellow human beings.
‘They have brought the suffering in Darfur into the awareness of millions, and have raised tens of millions of dollars to assist the victims of violence there. They inspire us all and show that every person, in every walk of life, can do something to help make the world a better place.’
Clooney, 46, and 42-year-old Cheadle – who have made many trips to the war-ravaged area in the past two years and spoken with government leaders about the dire situation – will accept the honour from Gorbachev and the Mayor of Rome Walter Veroni at next month’s summit.
Earlier this year, both actors appeared in the documentary Darfur Now, telling the United Nations about the drastic need for action.
More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million others have been displaced from their homes since fighting began in 2003.
