American photographer wins World Press Photo award

American photographer John Stanmeyer hasw won the World Press Photo award for 2013, it was announced Friday.

Stanmeyer, of the VII Photo Agency, submitted a picture of African migrants on the shore of Djibouti city at night, raising their phones in an attempt to capture an inexpensive signal from neighbouring Somalia, Xinhua reported.

He received a cash prize of 10,000 euros (about $13,600).

Over the last decade, 49-year-old Stanmeyer has worked nearly exclusively for National Geographic. His winning photo was also shot for the magazine.

An international jury selected the winners of the 57th World Press Photo contest.

"It's a photo that is connected to so many other stories -- it opens up discussions about technology, globalisation, migration, poverty, desperation, alienation, humanity," said jury member Jillian Edelstein at a press conference in Amsterdam.

Jury member David Guttenfelder said: "The photo is like a message in a bottle, it is one that will last for all of us. People will bring their own life experiences to it as they stand in front of it."

The jury gave prizes in nine categories to 53 photographers. By the mid-January deadline, 98,671 images had been submitted by 5,754 photographers from 132 countries and regions. Stanmeyer's picture also won the first prize in the Contemporary Issues category.