The media gathered outside the Milpark hospital in Johannesburg on Wednesday night as they waited for news about former president Nelson Mandela.
Journalists inside the hospital were earlier escorted out of the building by security guards.
Mandela was admitted to the hospital on Wednesday afternoon for what were described as routine tests. Hospital staff declined to speak to reporters.
Nelson Mandela Foundation spokesperson Sello Hatang was reported as saying that Mandela was “in no danger and is in good spirits”.
Hatang’s statement on Wednesday afternoon said: “We can confirm that Mr Mandela is at Milpark hospital undergoing routine tests.”
Hatang did not answer his cellphone for follow-up questions.
Mandela’s wife Graça Machel and long-time aide Zelda la Grange visited Mandela on Wednesday.
Zuma in Davos
Meanwhile, President Jacob Zuma did not intend returning from the World Economic Forum in Davos.
“The president is in Davos and will be there until January 28,” presidential spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said.
“From there, he is flying to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia to attend the African Union Summit. The programme has not changed.”
‘Frail’
Archbishop Desmond Tutu told the South African Press Association on Wednesday that Mandela was “frail”.
“I saw him last week,” Tutu said in Cape Town on Tuesday.
“He was all right, I mean he’s 92, man, you know. And he’s frail.”
Earlier this month, a report circulated on Twitter that the elder statesman had died.
It was condemned as malicious and insensitive by the African National Congress. – Sapa