Nelson Mandela funeral

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Hometown Lays Mandela to Rest

South African icon buried in Qunu amid fanfare, tears

(Newser) - South Africa has laid Nelson Mandela to rest in the gentle hills where he began his "long walk to freedom," burying the anti-apartheid icon in his hometown of Qunu as military jets and helicopters flew overhead in tribute. Some 4,500 people, including many foreign dignitaries, attended a...

Mandela's Body Arrives in Home Village as Tutu 'Snubbed'

Retired archbishop says he was not invited to tomorrow's funeral

(Newser) - Nelson Mandela's body arrived in his home village of Qunu today ahead of a funeral and burial tomorrow, the AP reports. The hearse carrying his casket was escorted by throngs of police, military, and other vehicles after being flown from the South African capital on a military plane. Many...

Mandela Sign Interpreter: I Was Hallucinating

He says he suffered schizophrenic episode onstage

(Newser) - The interpreter blasted for supposedly making up sign language during Nelson Mandela's memorial service says he wasn't faking it—he was hallucinating and hearing voices. Thamsanqa Jantjie says he suffers from schizophrenia and he had an episode during the service, possibly brought on by the magnitude of the...

Mandela Sign-Language Interpreter Made Stuff Up

Deaf community outraged

(Newser) - The sign-language interpreter at Nelson Mandela's memorial service yesterday wasn't actually signing what the speakers on stage were saying, according to many members of the deaf community. As the service was live-streamed, Wilma Newhoudt-Druchen (the first deaf woman elected to South Africa's Parliament) tweeted , "ANC linked...

Is the Obama-Castro Handshake a Big Deal?

Right fumes over gesture at Mandela memorial

(Newser) - At Nelson Mandela's memorial, President Obama shook hands with the Cuban president, and the media is in a tizzy about it. "The handshake between Obama and Raúl Castro makes the stomach turn," writes Mona Charen at the National Review . "The nature of the Cuban regime...

Mandela Funeral Poses Massive Challenge

World leaders will descend on remote village

(Newser) - The death of Nelson Mandela is certain to plunge South Africa into a near-standstill of national mourning for around two weeks—but the country still faces the challenge of holding one of the biggest state funerals ever seen, the Guardian finds. Scores of heads of state, royals, other dignitaries, and...

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