Investigative journalist turned prosaic storyteller Svetlana Alexievich has won a special German literary prize for promoting peace. The 65-year-old has written extensively on several key chapters of modern history.

The Board of Trustees of the Peace Prize of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association has awarded its 2013 peace prize to Belarusian journalist and author Svetlana Alexievich.

The board on Thursday praised the investigative journalist, saying she "has consistently and effectively traced the lives and experiences of her fellow citizens in Belarus, Russia and the Ukraine by articulating their passions and sorrows in a humble and generous manner."