Two Somali nationals have been killed in Ethiopia when a bomb they were making detonated in their home in Addis Ababa.
The two men, who Ethiopian authorities speculate may have been planning to target a football match, were in Ethiopia illegally, according to Ethiopia’s Minister of Information Redwan Hussein.
“Who sent them is not yet known, no one has claimed responsibility for that and which incident, which event they were looking to explode is not yet known,” Redwan said, adding that investigations are under way.
Neighbouring Kenya has been a frequent target of attacks by Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shebab rebels, who have demanded that Kenyan troops leave Somalia. Last month, at least 67 people were killed during a four-day siege carried out by Al-Shebab gunmen who ambushed the upmarket Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi.
Ethiopia, which shares a long border with Somalia, sent troops into the country in 2011 to help African Union and Somali defence forces fight Al-Shebab extremists. Redwan said several “terrorism plots” had been foiled on Ethiopian soil in the past, including a plan to target an AU summit in 2010, and added that security in the country remains tight.
AU forces have been in Somalia fighting Al-Shebab since 2007 and have pushed the Islamists out of all major towns, including the capital Mogadishu and the key port town of Kismayo. Al-Shebab still control swathes of rural areas in the south.
Last week, the AU announced it would beef up its forces by 35 percent, bringing the total number of men on the ground to 23,966. Some Ethiopian troops started pulling out of Somali this year, but following the attacks in Nairobi, the Addis Ababa government said it has no plans to withdraw its forces from Somalia.
