Archbishop Desmond Tutu dead at 90

South African anti-apartheid icon Archbishop Desmond Tutu, described as the country’s moral compass, died on Sunday aged 90, sparking an outpouring of tributes for the outspoken Nobel Peace Prize winner.

Tutu, who had largely faded from public life in recent years, was remembered for his easy humour and characteristic smile -- and above all his tireless fight against injustices of all colours.

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, announcing the archbishop’s death on Sunday, called him a man of “extraordinary intellect, integrity and invincibility against the forces of apartheid”.

“The passing of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is another chapter of bereavement in our nation’s farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans who have bequeathed us a liberated South Africa,” he said, weeks after the death of FW de Klerk, the country’s last white president.

Mourners gathered outside his former parish in Cape Town, St George’s Cathedral, while others massed at his home, some holding flower bouquets, according to an AFP journalist.

“It’s very, very sad he died. He was such a good man,” said retired accountant, Diane Heard.

The South African cricket team wore black armbands in his honour on the first day of the first Test against India in South Africa.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said Tutu had “inspired a generation of African leaders who embraced his non-violent approaches in the liberation struggle”.