Nelson Mandela has pneumonia but is breathing without difficulty after treatment say his doctors Nelson Mandela, 94, had fluid on his lungs caused after suffering pneumonia His conditions is 'comfortable' and he is responding well to treatment Third hospital visit since December after having gallstones and lung infection Doctors have cleared fluid from Nelson Mandela's lungs after the former president had a recurrence of pneumonia Nelson Mandela is breathing "without difficulty" after undergoing a procedure to clear fluid in his lung area which was caused by pneumonia, a South African presidential spokesman said today. The 94-year-old former president and anti-apartheid leader suffered a recurrence of pneumonia, said spokesman Mac Maharaj. South African officials had previously not specified that Mr Mandela had pneumonia, saying instead that he had a lung infection. Mr Mandela's medical team reported that the increasingly frail ex-leader "had developed a pleural effusion which was tapped," President Jacob Zuma's office said in a statement. This has resulted in him now being able to breathe without difficulty. He continues to respond to treatment and is comfortable. The president's office thanked all who have prayed for Mr Mandela and his family and have sent messages of support. Mr Mandela was admitted to a hospital in the capital, Pretoria, late on Wednesday night. It was his third admission to hospital since December, when he was treated for a lung infection and also underwent a procedure to remove gallstones. Mr Mandela spent 18 days on a ward in December undergoing treatment for a lung infection and gallstones surgery. Nelson Mandela is said to be breathing 'without difficulty' after having a procedure to clear fluid in his lung Former South African President Nelson Mandela may have been taken to the Mediclinic Hospital in Pretoria Worshippers atop a hill overlooking Johannesburg offered prayers for the quick recovery of former president Nelson Mandela on Friday Earlier this month, he spent a night in a hospital for what officials said was a scheduled medical test. Mr Mandela became South Africa's first black president in 1994 after elections were held, bringing an end to the system of white racist rule known as apartheid. He had spent 27 years in prison under the apartheid regime and after his release in 1990 was widely credited with averting even greater bloodshed by helping the country in the transition to democratic rule. Mr Mandela (pictured with his family celebrating his 93rd birthday) is said to be responding well to treatment Mr Mandela has spent much of last year in Qunu, his ancestral village in the poor Eastern Cape province.