'%20id='ico-down'%20stroke='%23000000'%20stroke-width='1.5'%3e%3cg%20transform='translate(1092.250000,%20254.750000)'%3e%3cpolyline%20id='Path-2-Copy-4'%20transform='translate(5.500000,%202.750000)%20scale(1,%20-1)%20rotate(-180.000000)%20translate(-5.500000,%20-2.750000)%20'%20points='0%200%205.5%205.5%2011%200'%3e%3c/polyline%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e){kind=small}
South Africa’s retired archbishop Desmond Tutu will this week undergo minor surgery to fix an undisclosed but persistent infection, his family said Tuesday.
The 84-year-old Nobel Peace laureate was hospitalised 13 days ago to treat a recurring infection.
His family said in a statement that he was still in Cape Town hospital where he is responding “well” to treatment, but will have to undergo surgery.
“The Archbishop will undergo a small surgical procedure on Wednesday to address the root cause of the infections,” said a statement released by the family.
The statement did not provide further details.
He was hospitalised three times in 2015 over a persistent infection that his foundation — the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation — said was a result of the prostate cancer treatment he has been receiving for nearly 20 years.
The much-adored former archbishop of Cape Town, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984, gaining worldwide prominence for his strong opposition to South Africa’s apartheid regime.