One person died, and 11 others sustained injuries after a hand grenade was thrown into a hotel located in Gondar, a city in Ethiopia’s Amhara region.
The grenade was thrown into a hotel named Entasol, Fana Broadcasting Corporate reported. The injured have since been transported to the Gondar Referral Hospital where they are receiving treatment.
Authorities have not commented on why the hotel was targeted and the possible motivation for the crime. Police are currently looking for the suspects.
Ethiopia’s is currently under a six-month long state of emergency, which was imposed in October in response to widespread anti-government protests.
The Amhara region, home to Ethiopia’s second largest ethnic group, was one of the hot spots in the violent anti-government protests that rocked the East African country last year.
The protests began in the Oromia region, home to Ethiopia largest ethnic group, in 2015 over a now cancelled government land expansion policy.
In August, thousands took to the streets of Gondar to protest against a government decision to place an Amhara district under the administrative jurisdiction of Tigray, a neighbouring region.
The protests over the Welkait community being placed under the Tigray region turned violent and led the U.S. government to issue a temporary travel ban on Gondar.
Human Right Watch has reported that over 500 people were killed in the demonstrations that engulfed Ethiopia. Thousands have been imprisoned in the government’s attempt to quell the unrest.
In December, over 9,000 suspects arrested under the state of emergency were released after receiving rehabilitation. However, more than 2,000 suspects will reportedly face charges.
On Tuesday, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said the government would only lift the state of emergency after “consolidating gains” it has made following the deadly unrest.
“As far as the date of lifting the state of emergency is concerned, it should be seen in the perspectives that we have to consolidate the gains that we have made so far,” Prime Minister Desalegn said.
