South Africa mourned on Thursday as news spread of the death of its iconic leader, Nelson Mandela. Mandela was 95 and spent several months in the hospital earlier this year for a recurring lung infection.
South Africans hold a candlelight vigil outside the house of former South African president Nelson Mandela following his death in Johannesburg on December 5, 2013. ( ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images)
South Africans sing as they pay tribute to former South African president Nelson Mandela following his death in Johannesburg on December 5, 2013. (ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images)
A woman holding a candle and a rose cries outside the house of former South African president Nelson Mandela following his death in Johannesburg on December 5, 2013. ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images)
South Africans react as they pay tribute to former South African president Nelson Mandela following his death in Johannesburg on December 5, 2013. (ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images)
People light a candle for former president Nelson Mandela on hearing of his death outside his home in Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)
South Africans gather outside Nelson Mandela's home in Johannesburg on December 6, 2013 . (ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images)