People around the world share their thoughts of anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela

“Death is something inevitable.When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people&his country,he can rest in peace” #Madiba

— NelsonMandela (@NelsonMandela) December 5, 2013

#Madiba Zuma: "What made Nelson #Mandela great was precisely what made him human."

— Mary Murray (@MaryMurrayNBC) December 5, 2013

Photo: The Apollo Theater in Harlem remembers Nelson Mandela. pic.twitter.com/OvYVgJcArD

— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) December 5, 2013

Called my mum, a South African, because I've known her to cry maybe 4 times in my life and once was in joy when Nelson Mandela walked free.

— Tabatha Southey (@TabathaSouthey) December 5, 2013

President Obama – please attend Nelson Mandela's funeral on behalf of all of us.

— Michael Moore (@MMFlint) December 5, 2013

"Love your enemy; do good to those who persecute you." #Mandela

— Michael Moore (@MMFlint) December 5, 2013

A look at next week's cover, a tribute to Nelson Mandela: http://t.co/I7BUutIwDz

— The New Yorker (@NewYorker) December 5, 2013

The New Yorker cover honoring #NelsonMandela pic.twitter.com/Qk8udsPmWC

— Tom Rotunno (@TomRotunno) December 5, 2013

An Afrikaner farmer once told me he was raised to hate #Mandela. Then, he changed utterly: "It was we who were in prison. Mandela freed us."

— Terry Moran 🇺🇸 (@TerryMoran) December 5, 2013

If there's anyone's life that deserves celebration, it's Nelson Mandela's.

— it’s lawsuit time (@jesseltaylor) December 5, 2013

"A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination." — Nelson Mandela

— Jaclyn Schiff (@J_Schiff) December 5, 2013

The fact that Mandela's death has been expected for some time and still feels truly tragic and jarring, speaks to how truly great he was.

— Jaclyn Schiff (@J_Schiff) December 5, 2013

#NelsonMandela you made your people proud!! We'll always love you for it!

— Rihanna (@rihanna) December 5, 2013

Just finished @charlierose interview. Naturally talked a lot about Mandela. Thoughts with his family and of course all of South Africa

— Stephen Fry (@stephenfry) December 5, 2013

Every time Melinda and I met Nelson Mandela, we left more inspired than ever. His grace and courage changed the world. This is a sad day.

— Bill Gates (@BillGates) December 5, 2013

"Courage …not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it." The world gives thanks for a life of courage. pic.twitter.com/175B95XR3Y

— Salman Rushdie (@SalmanRushdie) December 5, 2013

Muhammad Ali on Mandela: "He taught us forgiveness on a grand scale. His was a spirit born free, destined to soar above the rainbows."

— Major Garrett (@MajorCBS) December 5, 2013