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This picture taken on July 18, 2013 shows a portrait of former South African President Nelson Mandela with written messages left for his birthday outside the Medi Clinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria. Nelson Mandela spent his 95th birthday in hospital Thursday but his health was “steadily improving”, South Africa’s presidency said, as people around the world honoured his legacy with charitable acts. Six fraught weeks after he was admitted to hospital with a recurring lung infection, South Africans breathed a sigh of relief to learn that their national hero was getting better as they carried out good deeds to mark international Nelson Mandela Day.
AFP PHOTO / STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN