Ahmed Kathrada, South Africa's revered Indian-origin anti-apartheid activist who was one of Nelson Mandela's closest aides in his struggle to end the white minority rule, died in Johannesburg today. <br/><br/>His foundation said, Kathrada, 87, died at the Donald Gordon Hospital after complications following a brain surgery. Kathrada, who spent 26 years and 3 months in prison, including 18 years on the infamous Robben Island, was admitted to the hospital for dehydration but doctors later picked up a clot on his brain' which was subsequently removed. <br/><br/>Kathrada will be buried according to Muslim religious rights tomorrow.<br/><br/>South African President Jacob Zuma condoled the death of Kathrada, praising him for serving selflessly throughout his adult life. He declared a special official funeral for him.<br/><br/>The President instructed that the national flag fly at half-mast throughout the country from today until the evening of the official memorial service. Retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu described Kathrada as a man of remarkable gentleness, modesty and steadfastness, hailing him a moral leader of the anti-apartheid movement.<br/><br/>Kathrada, who frequently referred to Mandela as his 'elder brother', was among three political prisoners who were sentenced to life imprisonment together with the South African anti-apartheid icon after the infamous Rivonia Trial of 1964.<br/><br/>The two others were Andrew Mlangeni and Denis Goldberg. They played major roles in shaping the country's policies after Mandela's election as the first democratic President of South Africa in 1994.<br/><br/>He was among 2,000 people who were arrested and jailed for defying a law that discriminated against South African-Indians. Kathrada also received the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award, India's highest honour for foreign nationals of Indian-origin, in 2005 from the Indian President.<br/><br/>A prolific writer, Kathrada penned six books himself or with co-authors.

Veteran South African anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Kathrada has died. He was 87. Mr Kathrada passed away peacefully in a Johannesburg hospital after a short period of illness, following surgery to the brain.<br/><br/>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.<br/><br/>Apartheid was a legalised system of discrimination against non-white people introduced in South Africa in 1948.