Explosions heard in Ethiopia's capital after drone flights banned

Explosions were heard overnight in Ethiopia's capital, some in the area of the military headquarters in the west and another in the south of the city, residents and diplomatic sources say.

The blasts came hours after drone flights were banned over Addis Ababa and a week after fighting erupted in the north between the army and a newly launched alliance of armed groups including forces from the Tigray region.

A source linked to the opposition fighters told the Reuters news agency they were behind what they said were drone strikes.

"It was very loud. It was strong enough to set off car alarms," a resident in a southern area of the city, near the base of the secret service, told BBC Amharic.

He estimated that he heard the explosion in the Gotera neighbourhood some time around 00:30 local time (21:30 GMT).

Another resident told the BBC that he and his friends were playing games when they heard an explosion.

He lives in the western suburb of Torhayloch, a neighbourhood close to the military headquarters.

There were no official reports confirming the cause of the explosions, the exact locations affected or whether there were any casualties or damage.

The office of Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the defence ministry as well as the federal and Addis Ababa police have not responded to BBC requests for comment.

Meanwhile, in a BBC interview, Eritrea's government has denied allegations made by Addis Ababa that it is backing the new rebel alliance.

Clashes broke out last week after months of tension between the government and the party that controls Tigray, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

They both accuse each other of violating a 2022 peace deal that ended a brutal two-year civil war, which according to an Africa Union mediator is estimated to have cost 600,000 lives.

Last month, seven armed movements, including the TPLF and an Amhara militia known as Fano, formed an alliance with the stated aim of removing the government in Addis Ababa.

There is disagreement over which side started the latest fighting.

The TPLF says it was responding to a federal offensive, including drone strikes, while the government says Tigrayan forces attacked first after seizing control of airports in the region.

The BBC is unable to report from Tigray and surrounding areas.

It is difficult to verify what is happening on the ground and access to the internet and the main telecoms service provider in Tigray have also been cut.

Within Tigray, the national army and a pro-government militia appear to be advancing towards the region's main city of Mekelle.

In the southern Tigrayan town of Alamata, a medic told the BBC on Wednesday that 52 civilians had died in three days of heavy fighting.

The TPLF is also reported to be fighting in neighbouring Afar region, a strategic area which connects landlocked Ethiopia to Djibouti and its ports.

A humanitarian source has estimated that tens of thousands have fled their homes in Afar, according to the AFP news agency.

Fighting around Lalibela in the Amhara region, a Unesco world heritage site where foreign tourists have been stranded for more than a week, has involved the national army and Fano fighters, now allied to the TPLF.

The government has accused neighbouring Eritrea of backing these groups.

One pro-government militia commander fighting in Tigray told the BBC that Eritrean soldiers were involved on the front lines.

But in a rare response to the BBC from Eritrea's government, Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel dismissed the allegations.

He accused Ethiopia's ruling Prosperity Party (PP) of seeking external scapegoats for the country's mounting challenges.

"The PP regime has made it a habit to apportion blame to its neighbours in order to deflect attention from the myriad internal conflicts that it is fomenting in various parts of the country," he told BBC Tigrinya.

Eritrea was a key ally of Ethiopia during the Tigray war, fighting against the TPLF.

But relations between the two neighbours have since deteriorated largely over the Ethiopian prime minister's ambition to take ownership of one of Eritrea's Red Sea ports.

Ethiopia lost access to them when Eritrea seceded in 1993.

Abiy has even hinted at taking the port of Assab - about 60km (37 miles) from the border - by force as he sees direct access to the sea as important for Ethiopia's long-term future and economic prosperity.

As concerns over security mount in Ethiopia, the country's National Intelligence and Security Service (Niss) announced on Wednesday that it was imposing an indefinite ban on drone flights in Addis Ababa and surrounding areas.

The agency said it would not issue permits for drone operations and warned that legal action would be taken against anyone flying drones in restricted areas.

Niss said the measure was necessary to protect national leaders, critical infrastructure and major public events.

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