WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will make a statement from the White House Thursday on the death of former South African President Nelson Mandela

Mandela died earlier Thursday at age 95. He was South Africa's first black president and one of the world's most beloved statesmen.

Obama met with Mandela's family earlier this year when he visited South Africa. But he did not meet with the ailing leader, who was hospitalized throughout the U.S. president's visit.