Ethiopian capital on alert over terror threat

A warning of a possible attack by Al Shabaab, the Al Qaeda-affiliated Somalian terrorist group, Wednesday night or in the coming few days has been issued in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.

A statement was issued Wednesday morning by the US embassy advising its citizens to be cautious and to avoid large crowds and places which both Ethiopians and Westerners frequent.

"The US Embassy has received threat reports of Al Shabaab's intent to target the Bole area," it stated.

"Restaurants, hotels, bars, places of worship, supermarkets and shopping malls in the Bole Area should be avoided until further notice because they are possible targets for a potential imminent terrorist attack. While the exact location of this planned terrorist attack is not known, US citizens should continue to maintain heightened personal security awareness", it added.

However, the Ethiopian government has not confirmed or given any statement regarding the issue.

The Indian embassy in Ethiopia normally warns its community in special functions to be cautious and this is no exception, an embassy official said.

"We know the Ethiopian government will take the necessary control so we have nothing to worry about," he told IANS.

There are over 10,000 Indians living in Addis Ababa alone.

Sandeep Mohan, a businessman in Ethiopia and advisor for setting-up of machinery at Edna Mall Mati Multiplex Cinema, one of the areas mentioned in the warning, said that anything could happen but Ethiopia was a secure country and "hopefully everything will be under control".

"We will not run away just because a threat has been issued. It could happen anywhere in the world, sometimes even without a warning. We just have to be cautious", he told IANS.

The Ethiopian government has been fighting the Al Shabaab in collaboration with the UN and the African Union (AU) especially through the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

Tension heightened in Ethiopia and other neighbouring countries after the devastating attack by Al Shabaab Sep 21, 2013, on a Nairobi mall that claimed scores of lives.

(Hadra Ahmed can be contacted at hadraahmed@gmail.com)