Ethiopian police on alert after US warning

Addis Ababa, Nov 4: Ethiopian police said today they had stepped up security measures nationwide after the United States warned of possible suicide attacks against neighbouring countries by ''extremist elements'' in Somalia.

US Embassies in Ethiopia and Kenya urged American citizens on Thursday to be vigilant and use extreme caution when visiting well-known public places in both countries.

''We have strengthened surveillance throughout the nation and we will make certain Ethiopia will be the burial ground of any terrorist who ventures into the country,'' Commander Demsashe Hailu, spokesman for Ethiopia's federal police, told Reuters.

Extra checks were being carried out at all border posts, train stations and airports, he said, as well as random checks on vehicles in the capital Addis Ababa and other towns.

On Friday, the Islamists dismissed the US warning and said they had no plans to attack Ethiopia or Kenya. Washington accuses the Islamists of harbouring al Qaeda militants.

Ethiopia is the main backer of Somali's interim government, which is increasingly threatened by Islamists who now control the capital Mogadishu and much of the south.

Islamist fighters are in a standoff with government troops just 30 km (19 miles) from the interim government's sole outpost, Baidoa town. The Islamists say they are also facing thousands of Ethiopian troops who had invaded to prop up government forces.

REUTERS