Ethiopia is promoting coffee and tourism -- its two pillar industries -- at the ongoing 2024 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing.
At the Ethiopian national pavilion, where the rich aroma of coffee fills the air, Munteha Jemal, Plenipotentiary Minister of the Ethiopian Embassy in China, made and served authentic Ethiopian coffee as part of the country's traditional ceremony.
"In Ethiopia, when we have a coffee ceremony, the house owner not drink the coffee by himself. He's gathering all his neighbors around sitting here," she said.
The process involves roasting, grinding, and boiling the coffee beans before brewing.
As the birthplace of coffee plant, Ethiopia boasts a variety of coffee types grown at different altitudes, each with its unique aroma.
"According to the places where these coffees grew, they have their own special aroma," said Jemal.
Another important sector Ethiopia is trying to promote at the CIFTIS is tourism.
"The tourist attraction places are placed in different parts of Ethiopia, the north, south, east, west, center. For example, if you go to the north you can get this one, to the east you can get this one. These are all registered in UNESCO," said Jemal while showcasing the country's tourism map.
Themed "Global Services, Shared Prosperity", the 2024 CIFTIS, which opened on Thursday and will run till Monday, has attracted attendees from 85 countries and international organizations, as well as over 450 Fortune 500 enterprises and companies taking the lead in their respective industries.
Ethiopia promotes coffee, tourism at int'l trade fair in Beijing
Ethiopia promotes coffee, tourism at int'l trade fair in Beijing
Pakistani warplanes struck several locations across Afghanistan on Thursday night and Friday, killing at least six people, including a woman and a child, and wounding more than a dozen others, local officials said.
The strikes hit a fuel depot near the country's Kandahar Airport, areas in the capital Kabul, and the eastern Nangarhar Province.
A Pakistani security source said the strikes targeted hideouts belonging to the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
In Kabul's 21st police district, one of the areas hit, a market was left in ruins. Several cars were destroyed, and windows of buildings in the market and nearby areas were shattered. A crater caused by the Pakistani airstrikes was also visible.
"This is my car. I had parked it here, and it was the only way I could bring food to my family's table. It was my sole source of income and my only means of employment. Now my car is in this condition, and I have no other way to provide for my family," said Mohamad Ghulam, a taxi driver.
The airstrikes destroyed a house, killing four members of a single family. More than a dozen other households in the area reported their homes either fully or partially destroyed.
One of the victims was 22-year-old Hedayatullah, who had just been married. He was killed alongside his pregnant wife, as well as his brother and sister.
"Hedayatullah got married nine months ago. His brother was 18 years old. He himself was 22 years old, he also had a 12-year-old sister, and his wife was about 19 years old and was pregnant," said Ghulam Sakhi, a relative of the victims.
"This neighbor of ours was a family of five. Their mother was not present at the moment of the bombardment, but the rest of them lost their lives. It was Hedayatuallah's family. From my own family, two of my daughters, my sister-in-law, my brother, and two nieces got injured," said Mohamad Homayoun, a survivor.
In the past weeks, scores of people from both sides have been killed or injured in the conflict between Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, according to officials from the two countries.
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan has called for an immediate halt to cross-border clashes, warning that the escalating violence is driving a surge in civilian casualties and deepening a humanitarian crisis.
At least 6 killed, more than a dozen wounded in Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan: officials
