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Ethiopian Plane Hijacked by University Students
An Ethiopian plane was hijacked by nine university students Thursday on a domestic flight from Bahir Dar, capital of the northern state of Amhara, to Addis Ababa, Addis Ababa International Airport security officials told Xinhua.
The nine students from Addis Ababa University, who were among the 50 Ethiopian passengers and crew members aboard, claimed that they all carried military explosives, the security officials said.
After the plane safely landed at Khartoum International Airport, the students announced that they wanted to seek political asylum abroad and were waiting for talks with United States or British embassy officials in Sudan, the officials added.
According to latest report from CNN, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry has sent officials to the airport and asked the hijackers to release the innocent passengers and crew members as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the Addis Ababa Metropolitan Police Commission Thursday announced that the students of Addis Ababa University, who were held under police custody for nearly one week, were released earlier in the day.
The students were accused of illegally blocking roads and pressurizing the nearby high school students to disrupt classes during the recent student demonstration in the capital city.
The 10-day long protest, which ended on April 18, was initially aimed at pressing the Addis Ababa University authorities to lift a ban on a student organization and a publication of it. It resulted in the closure of the university and turned particularly violent on April 18, which left 31 people dead and 253 others injured.
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