Ethiopia denies press reports of shootings

Ethiopia has angrily denied press reports that its troops shot and killed at least two Somali demonstrators during anti-Ethiopian protests near the two Horn of Africa countries common border. Mengistu Ayalew, spokesman from the Ethiopian embassy in Nairobi, told IRIN: “The Ethiopian military presence in Somalia is imaginary - we are not there, and we do not commit atrocities.” The reports claimed Ethiopian troops killed an unknown number of people in Bulo Hawo, on the border, just inside southern Somalia. Witnesses were quoted as saying Ethiopian soldiers fired warning shots over the heads of a crowd protesting against the military presence of Ethiopia in the region, an allegation Addis Ababa has consistently denied. According to residents the incident began after a crowd began throwing stones at the troops. Local sources told IRIN that at least two people were killed in the incident and several others injured. There has been increasing unrest in the border region since the new interim Somali government “sent out feelers” to visit an area over which Mogadishu has traditionally had little influence. Over the last few days, soldiers have confiscated communication equipment, including radios, and have requisitioned vehicles, local sources told IRIN.