Kathrada passed away at about 4am on Tuesday in a Johannesburg hospital after suffering complications from a medical procedure to deal with clotting on the brain. His condition had severely deteriorated in the hours leading up to his death.
The Nelson Mandela Foundation mourned the death of the ANC stalwart.
“We are deeply saddened to learn this morning of the passing on of our dear friend & founding trustee‚ Ahmed #Kathrada‚” the foundation tweeted.
“Hamba Kahle Kathy.”
The Thabo Mbeki Foundation paid tribute to Kathrada for his contribution to the struggle against apartheid.
“Comrade Kathy‚ as he was fondly known‚ dedicated all his adult life to the struggle against apartheid and the construction of a non-racial‚ non-sexist and democratic South Africa. For this principled stand‚ he‚ together with his fellow comrades‚ spent more than a quarter of a century on Robben Island‚” the foundation said in a statement.
