Photos: Nelson Mandela dies at the age of 95
South Africa's president says Nelson Mandela has died.
Nelson Mandela
Mandela’s hard-fought defeat of apartheid, the South African system of white racism, gave him a stature matched by few others in the global campaign for equality. He was famed not only for his epic struggle but also for his grace after the fact.
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this May 15, 2004 file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela lifts the World Cup trophy in Zurich, Switzerland, after FIFA's executive committee announced that South Africa would host the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament. Mandela was pivotal in helping the country win the right to host the tournament. South Africa's President Jacob Zuma said, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)
Nelson Mandela
In this file photo from Monday Aug. 6, 2012, former president of South Africa Nelson Mandela, then 94, is seen at his home in Qunu, South Africa during a visit from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. On Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, Mandela died at the age of 95. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this March 27, 1998 file photo, South African President Nelson Mandela, left, and U.S. President Bill Clinton peer through the bars of prison cell No. 5, the cramped, gray cell where Mandela was jailed for 18 years in his struggle against apartheid, on Robben Island, South Africa. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Rick Wilking, Pool)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008 file photo former president Nelson Mandela, left, and his ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, right, during the unveiling of a statue of Mandela at the Drakenstein Prison near Franschhoek, South Africa. Madikizela-Mandela told a South African newspaper published Sunday Nov. 17, 2013, that Mandela, remains "quite ill" and unable to speak because of tubes that are keeping his lungs clear of fluid, though he is relaxed. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam-File)
Nelson Mandela
South African President Nelson Mandela waves to the crowd at the end of his speech during a rally at Brits, South Africa in this April 11, 1999, file photo. (Anacleto Rapping/Los Angeles Times/MCT)
Nelson Mandela
elson Mandela speaks to a cheering crowd at an African National Congress rally on April 4, 2004, in Soweto, South Africa. Mandela died on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/MCT)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this July 30, 2001 file photo, former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, right, speaks during a press conference alongside British model Naomi Campbell in Barcelona, Spain, before the 'Frock and Roll' benefit concert to raise money for the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. Heroic in his deeds, graceful in his manner, sainted in his image, Nelson Mandela long served as both cause and muse in the entertainment community. From the 1960s, when he was a political prisoner and South Africa was under the laws of apartheid, right up to recent times, when the racist laws of the land had fallen and he was among the worldís most admired people, Mandela inspired concerts, songs, poems, fiction and movies.(AP Photo/Cesar Rangel, File)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - This Nov. 29, 2003 file photo shows former South African President Nelson Mandela, left, kissing U.S. singer Beyonce Knowles, at the Nelson Mandela AIDS Benefit Concert in Cape Town, South Africa. Heroic in his deeds, graceful in his manner, sainted in his image, Nelson Mandela long served as both cause and muse in the entertainment community. From the 1960s, when he was a political prisoner and South Africa was under the laws of apartheid, right up to recent times, when the racist laws of the land had fallen and he was among the worldís most admired people, Mandela inspired concerts, songs, poems, fiction and movies. (AP Photo/file)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this Aug. 22, 1996 file photo, the Dalai Lama, left, walks hand-in-hand with South African President Nelson Mandela prior to an official reception at the presidential office in Cape Town, South Africa. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Sasa Kralj, File)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this March 17, 1997 file photo, South African President Nelson Mandela, left, shows the way to Britain's Princess Diana in Cape Town, South Africa, where they discussed the threat of AIDS in the country. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Sasa Kralj, File)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this June 15, 1990 file photo, Pope John Paul II, right, shakes hands with Nelson Mandela, deputy leader of African National Congress, during a private audience at the Vatican. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Claudio Luffoli, File)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this Oct. 26, 2005 file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela, left, walks with the Rev. Jesse Jackson after their meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this July 9, 1996 file photo, South African President Nelson Mandela stands with Queen Elizabeth II on his arrival at Buckingham Palace in London for a state banquet in his honor. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/WPA ROTA, Pool)
Nelson Mandela
FILE - In this Oct. 29, 1997 file photo, Libyan President Moammar Gadhafi, right, and South African President Nelson Mandela salute the crowd as they arrive at the congress center in Zuwarah, Libya, 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of Tripoli. South Africa's president Jacob Zuma says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. (AP Photo/Enric Marti, File)
Nelson Mandela
In this photo provided the New Yorker, a painting by Madiba, showing Nelson Mandela that will appear on the cover of the December 16, 2013 New Yorker is shown. Nelson Mandela died on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013 at age 95. (AP Photo, The New Yorker, Madiba)
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela addresses crowds gathered for the second "46664" concert near the small Southern Cape province town of George, March 19, 2005. "46664" is an AIDS awareness and fundraising campaign that takes it's name from Mandela's prison number during his 27 year incarceration. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings
Nelson Mandela
In this Aug. 29, 2007 file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela pauses during a statue unveiling ceremony in his honor at Parliament Square in London. The South African presidency says Nelson Mandela was re-admitted to hospital with a recurrence of a lung infection Thursday March 28, 2013. (AP Photo/Daniel Berehulak, Pool, File)
Nelson Mandela
Former South African President and Peace Nobel prize Nelson Mandela (R) meets, 22 September 2005, US actor Tim Robbins(L) at his house in Johannesburg. Robbins is currently shooting a film in South Africa. GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/Getty Images
Nelson Mandela
Irish rock star Bono, right, and former South African President Nelson Mandela pose after they met at Mandela's residence at Houghton in Johannesburg, South Africa Saturday May 25, 2002. U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill and Bono are on a 10-day tour of Africa. (AP Photo/Juda Ngwenya, Pool)
Nelson Mandela
Children play beneath a giant statue of former South African President Nelson Mandela, center back, on Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, Johannesburg, Sunday, March 10, 2013. Mandela, spent a night in a hospital after he was admitted for scheduled tests, the presidency said Sunday. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)
Nelson Mandela
Former South Africa's President Nelson Mandela, center, with wife Graca Machel, right, and granddaughter Tukwini Mandela, left, toast during his 90th birthday celebrations at his house in Qunu, South Africa, Saturday, July 19, 2008. Mandela, the anti-apartheid icon with his family, and the whole village is celebrating. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, POOL)
Nelson Mandela
A hawker passes portraits of former president Nelson Mandela depicted in various stages of his life in a Soweto, South Africa, street Thursday, March, 28, 2013. 94-year-old Mandela, the anti-apartheid leader who became South Africa's first black president, has been hit by a lung infection again and is in a hospital, the presidency said. Mandela, has become increasingly frail in recent years and has been hospitalized several times in recent months, including earlier this month when he underwent what authorities said was a scheduled medical test. The Nobel laureate is a revered figure in South Africa, which has honored his legacy of reconciliation by naming buildings and other places after him and printing his image on national banknotes. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)
Nelson Mandela
In this Wednesday May 30, 2012 file photo South Africa's former president Nelson Mandela, after receiving a torch to celebrate the African National Congress' centenary from ANC chairperson Baleka Mbete in Mandela's home village of Qunu in rural eastern South Africa. The South African presidency says Nelson Mandela was re-admitted to hospital with a recurrence of a lung infection Thursday March 28, 2013. (AP Photo/Lulamile Feni-Daily Dispatch)
Nelson Mandela
In this photo taken on Thursday, March 14, 2013, a statue of Former South African president Nelson Mandela at the entrance to the Robben Island ferry departure point at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa. Nelson Mandela, the anti-apartheid leader who became South Africa's first black president, has been admitted to a hospital with a recurring lung infection, South Africa said Thursday, March 28, 2013. Mandela, 94, has become increasingly frail in recent years and has been hospitalized several times since last year, mostly recently earlier this month when he received what a presidential spokesman described as a "successful" medical test. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)
Nelson Mandela
In this file photo taken July 18, 2004, former South African President Nelson Mandela, center, is flanked by his wife Graca Machel, left, and his former wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, right, on his 86th birthday party in, Qunu, South Africa. Madikizela-Mandela is back in the spotlight as investigators re-open moldering murder dockets about the fate of two young activists last seen at her home 24 years ago. (AP Photo/Debbie Yazbek-Star-file)
Nelson Mandela
Former South African President Nelson Mandela, left, talks with former President Bill Clinton at the closing ceremony of the XIV International AIDS conference in Barcelona, Spain, Friday July 12, 2002. (AP Photo/Cesar Rangel)
Nelson Mandela
In this Saturday, May 15, 2004, file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela lifts the World Cup trophy, in Zurich, Switzerland, after FIFA's executive committee announced that South Africa would host the 2010 FIFA World Cup.(AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)
Nelson Mandela
President Clinton applauds South African President Nelson Mandela Wednesday, Sept. 23, 1998, after the president presented Mandela the Congressional Gold Medal during a Capitol Hill ceremony. ``No medal, no award, no fortune, nothing we could give him could possibly compare to the gifts he has given to us and to the world,'' Clinton said before presenting the medal. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Nelson Mandela
South African President Nelson Mandela talks with Britain's Prince Charles, left, Friday, July 12, 1996 during their visit to Brixton in south London on the last day of Mandela's four-day state visit to the United Kingdom. (AP Photo/Pool)
Nelson Mandela
South African President Nelson Mandela says goodbye to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II as he departs from London's Buckingham Palace at the end of his state visit to Britain, Friday July 12, 1996. President Mandela was a guest of the queen at Buckingham Palace during his visit. (AP Photo/Dave Caulkin,WPA pool)
Nelson Mandela
South African President Nelson Mandela smiles with actor Sidney Poitiers as he talks at a news conference in Cape Town, Friday, May 17. 1996. Poitier is in South Africa starring in the leading role as Mandela, alongside Michael Caine, who plays former President F. W. de Klerk in "One Man One Vote". The film tells the story of the transition from a white minority government to black majority rule. (AP Photo / Sasa Kralj)
Nelson Mandela
WASHINGTON, DC., September 23, 1996 -- South African President Nelson Mandela speaks in the Rotunda of the US Capitol Wednesday. The U.S. government gave Mandela its highest honor, awarding him a Congressional Gold Medal for ending apartheid and promoting reconciliation in South Africa. (KRT) AP PL BL KD RTR 1998 (Vert.)
Nelson Mandela
South Africa's former president Nelson Mandela, left, and muscian Bob Geldolf appear on stage in London's Trafalgar square as part of a campaign called 'Make Poverty History' Thursday Feb. 3, 2005. Mandela spoke on the eve of a London meeting by the finance ministers of the Group of Seven industrialized nations ( AP Photo/ PA, Stefan Rousseau)
Nelson Mandela
A giant statue of former president Nelson Mandela after being unveiled on Naval Hill in Bloemfontein, South Africa, Thursday, Dec 13, 2012, by president Jacob Zuma, unseen, ahead of the ruling African National Congress's elective conference. Mandela, who has been hospitalized since the weekend, is recovering from a lung infection. (AP Photo/STR)
Nelson Mandela
Former South African President, Nelson Madiba Mandela is aided to his car 02 October 2005 soon after he arrived in Nairobi, Kenya. Mandela and his delegation arrived for a two week visit that will see them tour all eight provinces of the East African Nation in a bid to encourage the adoption of the African Peer Review Mechanism, viewed as a sound tool for stemming corruption and ensuring accountable governance from African governments. TONY KARUMBA/AFP/Getty Images
Nelson Mandela
President Barack Obama, pauses as he talks about former South African President Nelson Mandela, after a meeting with, from left, President Macky Sall of Senegal, President Joyce Banda of Malawi, Obama, President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone, and Prime Minister José Maria Pereira Neves of Cape Verde in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, March 28, 2013. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Nelson Mandela
Michael Jackson, right, hugs former South African President Nelson Mandela, left, in Pretoria, South Africa, Saturday, July 20, 1996. (AP Photo/Adil Bradlow, File)
Nelson Mandela
Pope John Paul II is welcomed by South African President Nelson Mandela, right, upon his arrival at Johannesburg airport at the start of his first official visit to South Africa in this Sept. 16, 1995. (AP Photo/Pool, File)
Nelson Mandela
Former South African president Nelson Mandela walks arm-in-arm with Earl Spencer, the brother of Princess Diana, and an aide after visiting her grave in Althorp, Northamptonshire, November 1, 2002. Mandela laid a wreath at the island burial site and planted a tree in the grounds of the Althorp estate during the visit. REUTERS/POOL/David Jones
Nelson Mandela
U.S. talk show personality Oprah Winfrey with former South African President Nelson Mandela during the Agenda for Earth Turning Ceremony for The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa in Henley on Klip south of Johannesburg, December 6,2002. REUTERS/Juda Ngwenya
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Nelson Mandela, who became one of the world's most beloved statesmen and a colossus of the 20th century when he emerged fr…