Ethiopian police said Saturday they have seized some illegal arms following successive surprise searches carried out in the country's capital Addis Ababa.

Police said in a statement that they have seized 15 various pistols, a Kalashnikov and several bullets through surprise searches carried out in different parts of the capital.

Late on Wednesday, police mounted a citywide campaign, searching vehicles for weapons and ammunition, witnesses said.

Ethiopia has seen a string of mystery blasts in recent months. Since the beginning of the year, Addis Ababa has been hit by at least 11 explosions, some attributed to grenades and others to landmines.

No one has claimed responsibility for the blasts, but various authorities have identified the most likely culprits as being separatist rebels, Somali Muslim extremists, opposition groups or Ethiopia's arch-rival neighbor Eritrea.

The two countries fought a war over their common border from 1998 to 2000 that cost at least 80, 000 lives and tensions remain acute.

Source: Xinhua