Mandela 'responding positively' to treatment in hospital

Former South African President Nelson Mandela is "responding positively" to treatment after he was readmitted to a hospital overnight for a recurring lung infection. President Jacob Zuma's office passed along the doctors' assessment of the ailing Mandela, the 94-year-old anti-apartheid icon and nation's first black president.

Mandela was conscious when he was taken to the hospital just before midnight Wednesday, Zuma's office said. It's the second time this month he has been hospitalized. More than two weeks ago, he was taken to a hospital for what officials described as a routine checkup.

Mandela has become increasingly frail over the years, and has not appeared in public since South Africa hosted the World Cup in 2010. They have appealed to the people of South Africa and the world to pray for the beloved Madiba and his family, and to keep them in their thoughts."

Considered the founding father of South Africa's democracy, Mandela became an international figure when he endured 27 years in prison for fighting apartheid, the country's system of racial segregation. In 1993, he and then-South African President F.W. de Klerk jointly won the Nobel Peace Prize. Mandela was elected president a year later, serving only one term, as he had promised.

Despite only rare public appearances in recent years, he retains his popularity and is considered a hero of democracy in the nation. Last year, South Africa launched a new batch of banknotes with a picture of a smiling Mandela on the front, a testament to his iconic status. Mandela's impact extends far beyond South African borders. After he left office, he was involved in mediating conflicts from Africa to the Middle East.

Via CNN