12 noon (0615 GMT

Sherpas in Nepal are refusing to rebuild the route on Mount Everest that was destroyed by an earthquake-triggered avalanche more than one week ago, a decision which will likely end this year's climbing season.

Gyanendra Shrestha, an official at Nepal's Mountaineering Department, said the Sherpas informed the office on Monday that they were not going to rebuild the route.

Mountaineering teams have until the end of the month to climb the peak, but without the route fixed it is not be possible for them to make their climbs. The Sherpas play a crucial role by bringing the ladders, ropes and equipment needed to clear the trail.

— Binaj Gurubacharya, Kathmandu, Nepal

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11 a.m. (0515 GMT)

Nepal is urging foreign rescuers to return home or go to rural areas saying most of the rescue work is over and the remaining operation can be handled by local workers.

Information Minister Minendra Rijal says the major rescue work in the urban areas of the capital Kathmandu and surrounding areas has been completed and there was no need for experts.

The came to the decision after a meeting of the emergency relief committee late Sunday.

Since the April 25 earthquake, 4,050 rescue workers from 34 different nations have flown to Nepal to help in rescue operations, provide emergency medical care and distribute food and other necessities. At least 7,276 people were killed and 14,267 injured in the quake.

— Binaj Gurubacharya in Kathmandu, Nepal

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10 a.m. (0415 GMT)

On Monday, the birthday of Gautam Buddha,

Hundreds of people have visited Buddhists shrines and monasteries in Nepal's quake-wracked Kathmandu to mark the birthday of Gautama Buddha and to pray for the country.

At the Swayambhunath shrine, located atop a hill on the northwestern edge of Kathmandu, hundreds of people chanted prayers Monday along with monks and nuns, as they walked around the hill where the white iconic stupa with its gazing eye is located.

The festival of Buddha Purnima marks the triple events of Gautam Buddha's life: his birth, his enlightenment and his attaining a state of Nirvana that frees believers from the circle of death and rebirth.

— Binaj Gurubacharya, Kathmandu, Nepal

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9.00 a.m. (0315 GMT)

The government says the death toll from the April 25 earthquake in Nepal has climbed to 7,276, including six foreigners and 45 Nepalese found over the weekend on a popular trekking route.

Nepal's Tourist Police reported that a total of 57 foreigners have been killed in the quake, and 109 are still missing, including 12 Russians and nine Americans.