Tourist bus attacked in Ethiopia protests November 4, 2005
TAKING A BREAK: Some Ethiopian Muslims take advantage of a period of relative calm in their capital Addis Ababa to celebrate the Islamic festival of Eid Al Fitr. (REUTERS)
ADDIS ABABA -- Protestors took to the streets of at least four town in Ethiopia to demand the release of detained politicians on November and in one case attempted to torch a bus full of tourists, witnesses said.
Since Tuesday, more than 40 people have been killed, mostly by police bullets, in political violence in the capital, Addis Ababa.
No new casualties were reported on Friday.
Riot police intervened to protect a bus full of tourists in Bahar Dar, west of the capital.
"The demonstrators stopped the bus, jumped on it and tried to set it on fire with petrol," said a travel agent handling the tourists.
He said that police, who had been battling rioters since morning, were forced to shoot into the air to disperse the rowdy mob before saving the terrified visitors.
"The students have been in the streets since morning," according to a witness in Awasa, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Addis Ababa.
"They are demanding the government to release opposition leaders," he added.
Gunshots were also heard in Awassa. It was not clear how many students were involved in the protests.
Similar protests were reported in the northern towns of Dessie and Debre Berhan and Bahar Dar.
Violence erupted on Tuesday when police clashed with groups of rioters in Addis Ababa.
The unrest worsened after police deployed in several districts to arrest leaders of an opposition party that had called for a variety of peaceful types of protest against elections held in May, which the party believes were rigged against it.
By Thursday, at least 42 people had been killed, many from gunshot wounds, while more that 200 had been injured and around 2,000 arrested.
