Mobile Internet Cut In Ethiopian Capital Amidst Deadly Unrest

Ethiopia has cut mobile internet access in the capital city Addis Ababa, amidst deadly unrest that left five people dead in the city on Monday

ADDIS ABABA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Sep, 2018 ) :Ethiopia has cut mobile internet access in the capital city Addis Ababa, amidst deadly unrest that left five people dead in the city on Monday.

Officials from the state telecom monopoly Ethio-Telecom weren't immediately available for comments on the reason for the mobile internet cut, or why the cut was restricted to Addis Ababa and its surrounding region.

It is estimated that the majority of Ethiopia's 50 million plus mobile phone users browse webpages largely or exclusively through their mobile handsets.

Earlier on Monday, Addis Ababa witnessed demonstrations in various parts of the city, as demonstrators were angry at reports of killings, looting and rape in Burayu town, located on the outskirts of the city.

The demonstrations turned violent in parts of Addis Ababa, leaving five people dead during confrontations between angry demonstrators and security forces.

Video clips showing dead bodies and looted houses and properties started appearing on Sunday on social media platforms causing grief and outrage in the city, which has largely been spared the violence that affected other parts of Ethiopia over the last three years.

The violence on Saturday and Sunday in Burayu town followed recent clashes in Addis Ababa among local residents and youth from surrounding ethnic Oromo localities who came to celebrate the return from exile of Dawud Ibsa, leader of Oromo Liberation Front rebel group.

Addis Ababa is an ethnically-mixed city of around 4 million people, but is situated within the larger Oromo-dominated Oromia regional state.