Prayers as Nelson Mandela remains critical

Prayers as Nelson Mandela remains critical (Agencies) / 28 June 2013 South Africans prayed and waited as the condition of ailing anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela continued to be critical, forcing President Jacob Zuma to cancel a trip to neighbouring Mozambique. Zuma had been due to attend a summit in Maputo of the Southern African Development Community to discuss regional infrastructure, but pulled out after visiting the 94-year-old former president in hospital late on Wednesday. But a government statement said Mandela’s condition improved overnight and is now “stable” while still critical. The statement followed a visit by President Zuma — his second in the past 24 hours — to the anti-apartheid hero in a Pretoria hospital, where he is being treated for a lung infection. “He is much better today than he was when I saw him last night. The medical team continues to do a sterling job,” Zuma said in a statement released by his office. US President Barack Obama said Nelson Mandela was a “hero for the world” whose legacy would live on throughout the ages.  “He is a personal hero. I think he is a hero for the world, and if and when he passes from this place, one thing I think we all know is that his legacy is one that will linger on throughout the ages,” Obama said in Senegal. Taylor Scott International