Nepal Marks One Month Since Earthquake With Prayers For Peaceful Recovery

Nepal on Monday marked one month since the nation's worst disaster in modern history with solemn tributes to thousands of earthquake victims and prayers for the country's recovery.

Hundreds of Nepalis attended a candlelit vigil in the capital Kathmandu for nearly 8,700 people killed in the April 25 earthquake, the BBC reported. Hundreds more formed a human chain around the collapsed remains of the historic Dharahara Tower in the capital, which became an icon of the nation's shattered cultural heritage.

"We are here to pray for peace of the people who were killed and to pledge that we will rebuild the country," student Suresh Niraula told The Associated Press at Monday's vigil.

The poverty-stricken country faces an uphill battle to recover from the quake. Many of the worst-hit areas lie in remote regions that are difficult for aid groups and the government to reach.

The United Nations has only raised 22 percent of the $423 million required to provide basic relief to earthquake survivors. U.N. resident coordinator in Nepal Jamie McGoldrick told Reuters on Monday he was disappointed by the response, which he partly blamed on "donor fatigue" in response to the myriad crises around the world.

In a galling reminder that the aftershocks are not yet over, Nepal was hit by two more seismic tremors on Monday. The aftershocks -- including a 7.3-magnitude earthquake on May 12 -- have triggered landslides and avalanches, disrupted recovery efforts and left thousands homeless and reeling from the trauma.

"I would love to get my life back. But the repeated tremors have affected the mental state of everyone in the village," Resham Shrestha, who lost his wife and infant son in the earthquake, told Al Jazeera. "It's not just me with my loss. It's difficult to think of a plan to rebuild."