Nelson Mandela recovering after gallstone operation

Nelson Mandela, the 94-year-old former South African president and Nobel Peace laureate hospitalised with a lung infection, has successfully undergone a procedure to have gall stones removed, the South African government said today.

"The former president underwent a procedure via endoscopy to have gallstones removed. The procedure was successful and Madiba is recovering," President Jacob Zuma's office said in a statement, using Mandela's clan name.

South Africa's first black president, who came to power in historic all-race elections in 1994 after decades struggling against apartheid, remains a symbol of resistance to racism and injustice at home and around the world.

Mandela was admitted to a Pretoria hospital on Saturday a week ago after being flown from his home village of Qunu in a remote, rural part of the Eastern Cape province.

Tests revealed a recurrence of a lung infection and that he had developed gallstones, the government statement said.

When he was admitted on Dec. 8, officials stressed there was no cause for concern although domestic media reports suggested senior members of the government and people close to him had been caught unawares.