Update 1-- Nelson Mandela Suffers Recurrence Of Lung Infection, Tests Show

UPDATE 1-- Nelson Mandela suffers recurrence of lung infection, tests show < br />

2012-12-11 16:48:09 GMT+7 (ICT)

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (BNO NEWS) -- Former South African President Nelson Mandela is suffering from a recurrence of a previous lung infection but is responding to treatment as he remains hospitalized, a government spokesman said in a statement on Tuesday.

Presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj said doctors have concluded a series of tests which have revealed a recurrence of a previous lung infection. "Madiba is receiving appropriate treatment and he is responding to the treatment," Maharaj said, referring to Mandela by his Xhosa clan name.

Mandela, 94, was hospitalized Saturday at 1 Military Hospital near South Africa's capital, Pretoria. President Jacob Zuma previously said the anti-apartheid icon was receiving medical attention consistent with his age and stressed there is no cause for alarm, but the lack of information caused growing concern.

Before being elected as President, Mandela was a strong anti-apartheid activist and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress. He spent 27 years in prison after being convicted and sentenced to life in prison on charges for sabotage and other crimes. Much of his prison term was served on Robben Island.

Mandela was released on February 11, 1990, and became president only four years later, leading the country with a multi-racial administration to end the apartheid. Mandela, along with Frederik Willem de Klerk, were jointly awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa.

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