Nepal's Prime Minister appeals for $1.8 billion in quake aid

(Vatican Radio)  More than 8,500 people are now known to have died in the two major earthquakes to strike Nepal since April,  making them the deadliest to hit the Himalayan country on record.

Rescuers are continuing to search for dozens of people still missing in remote villages.

Prime Minister Sushil Koirala called on the international community Sunday for 1.8 billion dollars in aid to help rebuild the country. More than half a million homes, most of them in rural areas, have been demolished.