Gunmen in Ethiopia's north attacked a group of European tourists traveling in one of the world's lowest and hottest regions, killing five, wounding two and kidnapping two, an Ethiopian official said Wednesday. Ethiopia called the attack "an act of open terrorism" and said the gunmen came from neighboring Eritrea and attacked the tourist group before morning on Tuesday. Three Ethiopians were also taken hostage. Eritrea denied it was involved.
Ethiopian Communications Minister Bereket Simon said,”Austrian, Belgian, German, Hungarian and Italian nationals were among those in the tourist group”. Two Germans, two Hungarians and an Austrian were among the five killed, according to an Interpol report cited by the spokesman for Hungary's prime minister.
Two Belgians were seriously hurt and two Italians escaped unharmed, the report said. Two Germans were kidnapped.Austria's foreign ministry confirmed that an Austrian man from the province of Upper Austria was among the five dead. Germany's foreign minister also confirmed two German deaths, news agency dapd reported.Those wounded in the attack arrived in Addis Ababa Wednesday evening, where they were met by embassy personnel. A British diplomat at the airport said it was possible one British tourist was among the group attacked.
