Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Services says it foiled ISIS and Al-Shabaab militants planned attack. Arrests are made.
National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) of Ethiopia disclosed on Saturday that it has foiled planned terrorist attacks.
Several suspects that are said to be linked to ISIS and Al-Shabaab militant group are arrested.
Those arrested were detained in Somali region, Oromo region and the capital Addis Ababa.
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In a statement sent to state and affiliated news outlets like Fana Broadcasting Corporate (has shared pictures of arrested terrorist featured above), NISS said that those who are detained had preparations to launch attacks in the capital Addis Ababa and other areas of the country.
Community members in different parts of the country have contributed to the failure of their plans and for the arrest that NISS made, the statement added.
According to NISS statement, hotels, government institutions, and popular religious gatherings were targets of the planned attack.
In terms of execution, the militant’s plan was to explode bombs near big public gatherings and engage in shooting so as to wreak havoc to citizens.
Members of the group entered Ethiopia in a different direction. Al-Shabaab team led by Mohammed Abdulahi (who used a fictitious name Yahya Ali Hassan) entered the country from Djibouti. NISS statement added that he explored and took pictures of targets for the attack and that he was arrested in the Bole area of Addis Ababa as he was moving in the direction of carrying out his attack.
Two other persons, identified as Abdek Mohammed Hussein and Redwan Mohammed, who were coordinating the attack with him, based in Djibouti, along with another key man, Sumter Mohammed Iman Yousouf, were captured in a coordinated work with Djibouti intelligence unit.
Another group of terrorists entered Hargeisa, Somaliland, from Southern Somalia. This group took explosive suicide attack training, according to NISS, and they were captured in coordination with Somaliland intelligence body.
Among those who were arrested in Somaliland Isaq Ali Saden who managed to obtain ID with a fake name Ibrahim Ali Aden from Ethiopia Somali region has opened two accounts with Commercial Bank of Ethiopia from which 2.5 million Ethiopian birr was seized which was meant to finance the terror plan.
Two more suspects are arrested in Chercher zone of Ethio-Somali region and Moyale town of Oromo region, NISS statement added.
ISIS members who planned the attack on Ethiopia directly entered from Bosaso area of Somaliland and headed to Addis Ababa, and were about to launch their attack when they were arrested by NISS near Bole area of Addis Ababa.
Another ISIS member is detained in Awash area of Ethiopia
NISS also said that it has seized communication devices that the terrorists used.
Federal and regional security authorities, intelligence services from Djibouti, Somaliland, Puntland, United States, Italian, France, and Spain have cooperated with NISS in the effort to capture the terrorists.
As well, the statement from NISS said that it has shared information with 16 countries from the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Asia regarding persons with links to arrested terrorists in Ethiopia.
