Barack Obama hails Archbishop Tutu as mentor, 'moral compass'

Former US president Barack Obama, the nation's first Black leader, on Sunday hailed late Archbishop Desmond Tutu as a towering figure and "moral compass" who fought against injustice in South Africa and elsewhere.

Tutu, a fellow Nobel Peace laureate, "was a mentor, a friend, and a moral compass for me and so many others," Obama said in a statement.

"A universal spirit, Archbishop Tutu was grounded in the struggle for liberation and justice in his own country, but also concerned with injustice everywhere," Obama said, adding that Tutu sought to "find humanity in his adversaries."d