Ethiopia landslide at Amhara's Tsadqane Debre Mitmaq St Mary Monastery kills 14 - BBC News

It sent rocks and earth crashing on to those praying at an overnight service, the authorities say.

Image source, North Showa Zone PoliceImage caption, Eleven of the 14 people found in the debris have been buried at the monastery

Funerals have been held for some of the 14 people killed in a landslide that hit a mountain monastery hosting an overnight prayer session in Ethiopia's northern Amhara region.

Rescue efforts for others feared trapped in the debris after a hillside above the Orthodox Church monastery collapsed in the early hours of Monday morning have now been halted.

The monastery includes a prayer chamber carved into the mountainside, where the worshippers had gathered for the special prayer service.

"The land above the cave… slid after the heavy rain that lasted throughout the night," Dagnachew Azbite, a senior local official, told the BBC.