Some 90 world leaders, including Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, bid farewell to the late South African President Nelson Mandela at the First National Bank soccer stadium, also known Soccer City, yesterday.

Before delivering his address, US President Barack Obama shook hands with Cuba’s Raul Castro, a rare gesture between the leaders of two ideological opponents that reflected the anti-apartheid hero’s spirit of reconciliation.

But the peace and harmony did not stretch to South African President Jacob Zuma, whom the crowd at the rain-soaked stadium in Johannesburg booed and jeered as he prepared to give his closing address.

The memorial at the stadium – the scene of the 2010 World Cup final – was the centrepiece of a week of mourning for Mandela, who was revered across the world as a symbol of reconciliation and forgiveness.