Nelson Mandela: Coffin arrives in Qunu for burial

Nelson Mandela: coffin has arrived in his childhood home in Qunu in the Eastern Cape region of South Africa, the final leg of its journey. 

Large numbers of people lined the roads in the rural region to pay their respects as the cortege passed by. A state funeral will be held on Sunday for Mr Mandela, who died on 5 December. At least 100,000 people saw the former South African president's body lying in state in Pretoria over the last three days, but some had to be turned away.

Last respects

The coffin was flown from Waterkloof airbase in Pretoria on a C130 military aircraft, escorted by two fighter jets. In line with tribal custom, Nelson Mandela's grandson Mandla accompanied him on the journey, speaking to his coffin to tell him he was on his way home to rest. It arrived in Mthatha, 700 km (450 miles) away, shortly before 14:00 local time (12:00 GMT).

To solemn music, the coffin draped in a South African flag was moved by a military guard of honour and placed in a hearse to begin the 32km journey to Qunu, where Mr Mandela had wanted to spend his final days and where he will be buried. People waving flags and cheering and singing - in places 10 to 12 deep - lined the route taken by the cortege through Mthatha town to pay their last respects.

Tears as well as smiles could be seen on the faces of onlookers.

"He is finally coming home to rest, I can't even begin to describe the feeling I have inside," 31-year-old Bongani Zibi told AFP news agency. The cortege then drove through the gates of the Mandela homestead in Qunu, where it will rest overnight in the grounds of the royal house of Thembu. Some 4,000 people - including presidents from Africa, several prime ministers, the Iranian vice-president, and the Prince of Wales - are expected to attend.(FraM Martins). 

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