Nelson Mandela opened his eyes and smiled after hearing news of Obama visit, daughter says

A critically ill Nelson Mandela opened his eyes and smiled when told President Obama was coming to South Africa, his daughter said Tuesday.
Zindzi Mandela said her 94-year-old father’s reaction to Obama’s upcoming visit affirms he has not given up on his fight to
live.

While at the bedside of South Africa’s first black president Tuesday, Zindzi Mandela said she told her father that the first black American President was about to visit their country.

“Obama is coming,” she told her father. “He opened his eyes and gave me a smile.”

The President and First Lady Michelle Obama are scheduled to leave Wednesday on a tour of Africa, first stopping in Senegal before traveling to South Africa Friday.
Obama has expressed interest in visiting Mandela, one of his personal heroes. But White House officials said they’ll defer to Mandela’s family regarding a possible visit.

Mandela, the anti-apartheid crusader who rose from political prisoner to president in the 1990s, was admitted to the Mediclinic hospital in Pretoria June 8 with a lung infection. His condition deteriorated to critical Sunday and has not changed, doctors said.