Funerals have been held for victims of a deadly landslide that struck a mountain monastery in Ethiopia's northern Amhara region during an overnight prayer gathering, killing 14 people and injuring at least seven others. The hillside above the Tsadqane Debre Mitmaq St Mary Monastery, located near the town of Sela Dingay some 200 kilometres northeast of the capital Addis Ababa, collapsed in the early hours of Monday after heavy rain, lightning and thunder lasted throughout the night. Rescue operations have since been called off, with officials indicating the death toll is final.

The monastery, which includes a prayer chamber carved into the mountainside, had drawn worshippers for a special holy water cleansing ritual — a practice widely observed among Ethiopian Orthodox Christians seeking spiritual healing for chronic illnesses. "Many of those who died had gathered to receive the holy water," said Megabe Hadis Neka Tibeb Ababu, the diocese's general manager. A mudslide carrying rocks swept down the hillside and buried part of the monastery complex, killing worshippers where they prayed. Eleven of the victims were buried at the monastery itself, while the remaining bodies were returned to their hometowns; identifying some of the dead proved difficult. Three of the most seriously injured were transferred to Debre Birhan Hospital for treatment.

Emergency teams, security personnel, healthcare workers and local residents all took part in search and rescue operations at the site. Archbishop Abune Klementos, head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church's North Shewa Diocese, travelled to the monastery to lead funeral prayers and offer comfort to grieving families.

The disaster highlights the recurring threat of landslides in Ethiopia during its main rainy season. The country, home to around 130 million people with more than three-quarters living in rural areas, has suffered a series of deadly weather-related events in recent years. In July 2024, a landslide in the southern Geze Gofa Zone killed more than 229 people, including rescuers, in one of the country's worst such disasters on record. Eighty people died in floods and landslides in a neighbouring zone this past March. Scientists have repeatedly warned that human-driven climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of intense rainfall events across East Africa, making communities in vulnerable highland areas — like those surrounding the Amhara region's mountainous monasteries — ever more exposed to such risks.