The gunmen opened fire on nine Chinese nationals, killing one of them, during the incident in Garba Guaracha town, located around 160km (99 miles) north of the capital, Addis Ababa.

“Unfortunately one of them has died,” the statement confirmed.

The embassy has warned Chinese citizens to increase their security awareness and evacuate from “high-risk areas”.

In Oromia and bordering areas, "pernicious cases of armed attacks, kidnappings and robberies” are common, the embassy added.

The BBC’s attempt to reach to the region’s communications office was not successful.

While relative calm has returned to the war-hit northern region of Tigray following a peace deal signed in November, violence continues to surface in Oromia with fighting between government forces and rebel Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) reported.

Clashes around the region’s borders with neighbouring Amhara have also claimed lives in in the past few weeks.

Last week 20 workers of a factory owned by Nigeria’s Dangote Cement were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in the region. They were later reported to have been released.

It was the second such kidnapping in recent weeks.

In December, some Dangote Cement employees were also kidnaped and released after ransom was paid.