ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) - Explosions at two national oil company gas stations killed two people in the Ethiopian capital, police said Tuesday.
The national police spokesman said in a radio announcement that nine people were also wounded in Monday night's explosions — one in the center of Addis Ababa and one in a northern suburb.
Police did not immediately return calls seeking comment and asked an Associated Press reporter to leave the scene of one of the explosions.
Resident Tadelech Alemu, who lives near the station in the city center, said the blast there shook the area, but she said she did not go outside to investigate because she was afraid.
Several other residents said the blasts could be heard miles away.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosions. Ethiopia held elections last weekend for local, regional and some federal positions. The ballot was criticized by international rights group Human Rights Watch as marred by intimidation of opposition candidates.
The country is also embroiled in a border dispute with Eritrea, and is battling rebels in its ethnically Somali Ogaden region. |