ADDIS ABABA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Police in Ethiopia's eastern Somali regional state have arrested nine individuals accused of planning terror attacks, an Ethiopian official said on Wednesday.
Ali Hassen, deputy chief commissioner of the Somali region Police Commission, said the nine suspects are accused of plotting terror attacks on various religious sites in the region to coincide with the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fatir, which will be celebrated this year on Thursday, Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) reported.
In a separate development on Tuesday, Ethiopian security forces arrested 71 individuals accused of plotting terror attacks in the Ethiopian, Addis Ababa, and other major regional cities.
The security forces also seized more than 300,000 U.S. dollars in cash and several firearms allegedly intended to be used in the planned terror attacks.
