Sawt Falasteen - Trump all smiles as he wins FIFA's new peace prize

Gianni Infantino, the head of world football's governing body and a close ally of Trump, presented the 79-year-old with the award during the ceremony at the Kennedy Center in Washington.

"Thank you very much. This is truly one of the great honors of my life. And beyond awards, Gianni and I were discussing this, we saved millions and millions of lives," Trump said.

Infantino said Trump won the award for "exceptional and extraordinary" actions to promote peace and unity around the world.

FIFA announced the annual prize in November, saying it would recognize people who bring "hope for future generations."

Its inaugural recipient was hardly a surprise.

Infantino, 55, has developed a tight relationship with Trump, visiting the White House more than any world leader since Trump's return to office in January.

The US president often insists that he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in ending what he says are eight conflicts this year, including a fragile ceasefire in Gaza.

He was snubbed by the Norwegian Nobel Committee last month as it awarded the peace prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.

Trump has put himself at the head of a "board of peace" for war-torn Gaza -- Infantino also attended the signing of that peace deal in Egypt -- while his administration this week renamed a Washington peace institute after him.

The US leader has made the World Cup a centerpiece of his second presidency.

Yet it was an extraordinary gesture for FIFA, a sporting organization that trumpets its political neutrality.

There has been little transparency around the prize. Human Rights Watch says it has written to FIFA to request a list of the nominees, the judges, the criteria and the selection process -- and has received no response.

The prize came as Trump faces criticism from Democrats and rights groups on a host of issues.

The self-proclaimed "president of peace" has launched a huge US military build-up around Venezuela and ordered deadly airstrikes against alleged drug-smuggling boats.

He has also ordered a hardline migration crackdown, threatening to move World Cup games from cities where he has sent troops and freezing asylum decisions from 19 countries -- including World Cup participants Haiti and Iran.

And he has cracked down on political opponents, rival ideologies and those who challenge his false claim he won the 2020 election.

The venue for the draw, the Kennedy Center, was where Trump installed himself this year as chairman in what he called a war on "woke" culture.

L.AbuAli--SF-PST