BEIJING (AFP) - The wife of jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo said Friday she was "so excited" that her husband had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, demanding his release and thanking his supporters.

"I'm so excited, I'm so excited, I don't know what to say," Liu Xia told AFP by telephone.

"I want to thank everyone for supporting Liu Xiaobo. I want to thank the Nobel committee, Vaclav Havel, the Dalai Lama and all those people that have supported Liu Xiaobo," she said.

"I strongly ask that the Chinese government release Liu Xiaobo."

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