Ethiopian firefighters and youths prevented a fire, which had teared through shops and classrooms, from reaching the historic Addis Ababa Grand Anwar Mosque, the country's biggest mosque.
The fire, which raged for five hours overnight Wednesday before being put out, gutted around 50 shops, according to the Addis Ababa city Fire and Emergency Agency.
Agency Public Relations Head Solomon Mekonnen told reporters that youths in the area contributed immensely to putting out the fire and preventing it from spreading to the mosque.
A madrasa, however, was partially burned just outside the mosque's premises.
According to Mekonnen, there were no casualties. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
