A 47-year-old British tourist has been shot dead in an Ethiopian church on Christmas Eve after a man accidentally fired a gun.

The British national was shot in the north western city of Bahir Dar, a leading tourist destination about 300 miles from the capital Addis Ababa.

A suspect has reportedly been arrested and the Briton taken to the capital for a post-mortem.

The city of Bahir Dar, a leading tourist destination in Ethiopia, where a Briton was shot dead on Christmas Eve

The British national was shot dead in Bahir Dar at 10:30am local time yesterday, according to reports.

Government spokesman Shimeles Kema said the suspect had not known the gun was loaded when he fired the fatal shot.

He said: 'It appears that a resident of Bahir Dar, who was licensed to carry a gun, accidentally discharged his gun while changing the gun position from one shoulder to the other.

'The gun is an old rifle. He is a civilian. He has been arrested and the investigation is on gong. The accident happened in a church.'

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: 'We can confirm the death of a British national in Ethiopia. We are providing consular assistance to the families.'

Located on the souther tip of Lake Tana at the source of the Blue Nile river, Bahir Dar is home to 200,000 people and several ancient monasteries and churches.

Five tourists were killed, four people were kidnapped and three injured during an attack at Erta Ale volcano in Ethiopia's northern Afar region in January 2012.