Ahmed Kathrada: South Africa’s anti-apartheid veteran dies

Veteran South African anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Kathrada has died aged 87, his foundation says.

According to BBC the foundation says Mr Kathrada passed away peacefully in a Johannesburg hospital “after a short period of illness, following surgery to the brain”.

Along with Nelson Mandela, Mr Kathrada was among eight African National Congress activists sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964.

They were convicted of trying to topple the white minority government.

He is due to be buried on Wednesday at a private ceremony, but President Jacob Zuma has said that flags should fly at half mast in his honour and that public memorial service will also be held.

Mr Kathrada, affectionately known as Kathy, was not only one of Mr Mandela’s closest friends, but also a human rights activist in his own right who had a long history in the struggle against discrimination and apartheid, says the BBC’s Milton Nkosi.