Thousands of Ethiopians gathered in Addis Ababa to celebrate the annual religious festival of Meskel, a significant event for the local Orthodox Christian community. The festival, marked by the lighting of bonfires, is one of Ethiopia's most revered religious holidays, observed with rituals and joyous festivities nationwide.
The main celebrations take place in Meskel Square in Addis Ababa, where the patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ignited a large bonfire in the presence of thousands of believers dressed in white attire. Similar bonfires were lit across the country, symbolizing the cross upon which Jesus was crucified and its recovery by Saint Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine.
