Tears, prayers as Asia mourns tsunami dead 20 years on

"On a Sunday morning, where our family were all laughing together, suddenly a disaster struck and everything was gone. I can't describe it with words," Hasnawati told AFP.

A woman cries while performing rituals during a ceremony held for the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, at Pattinapakkam beach in Chennai on December 26, 2024. (AFP)