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Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Farewell to An Icon: Thousands Of Mourners Line Streets of South Africa As Nelson Mandela's Body Is Driven To Lie in State



Thousands of mourners lined the streets of South Africa this morning as Nelson Mandela's body was moved to lie in state in the capital - inside the building, which once housed the apartheid government he fought for five decades. South Africans formed a guard of honour for their former president this morning as his body was transported through Pretoria in a casket draped in the national flag, in a hearse surrounded by outriders, to lie in state for the first of three days.
This morning Mandela's grandson Mandla visited his open casket in the government's Union Buildings, followed by his second wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and third wife Graca Machel, as well as South Africa's current president Jacob Zuma.
Mr Mandela's remains will be moved daily between the Military Hospital on the outskirts of Pretoria to the Union Buildings. It was there that he assumed the first black presidency of South Africa in 1994, holding court in the same rooms once occupied by his white oppressors.

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