Six explosions were reported in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, on Saturday night, the U.S. State Department said, although it was not immediately clear if they were related to the conflict in the neighboring Tigray region of Ethiopia.
“At 10:13 p.m. on Nov 28 there were six explosions in Asmara,” the State Department said in the post on Sunday. The post did not mention the cause or location of the explosions.
But it urged Americans to “remain situationally aware of the ongoing conflict in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.” Tigrayan forces fighting Ethiopian soldiers have previously fired rockets at Eritrea.
Reuters was not immediately able to reach the Eritrean government or Tigrayan forces for comment.
On Saturday, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced that federal forces had taken control of Mekelle, Tigray’s capital, within hours of launching an offensive there.
The Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), a political party whose fight against the government began on Nov. 4, said it was withdrawing from Mekelle. The government says the TPLF began the conflict with a surprise attack on federal forces. The TPLF has described it as a “pre-emptive strike.”
The TPLF regards Eritrea, which has warm relations with Abiy, as an archenemy.
