Increasing its presence in the Middle East, Ethiopian will commence new nonstop flights from Addis Ababa to Muscat, the capital of Oman, on 27 December 2011.

Oman, located in the South Eastern Coast of the Arabian Peninsula, is a unique tourist destination in the Middle East, with a wide variety of activities. Oman has a wide variety of beaches over its 1700 km coastline; popular activities include scuba diving, rock climbing, surfing, sailing, cave exploration, and camel races. There are many shopping malls, mainly centered in Muscat, and Souqs can be found in many towns throughout the country.

Ethiopian forces have captured the central Somali town of Beledweyne from al-Shabab Islamist militants. Al-Shabab said its forces were surrounding the town after making what it called a planned withdrawal. Eyewitnesses said armoured vehicles and heavy artillery were used in the attack, which Ethiopia said was made at the request of the Somali government. Somalia's prime minister meanwhile announced an operation "to liberate the tyranny of... al-Shabab from Somalia".