U.S. researcher killed by rock-hurling protesters in Ethiopia

DAVIS, Calif. -- University of California, Davis officials say that a postdoctoral researcher in the university’s plant biology department was killed in Ethiopia when the vehicle she was riding in was struck by rocks thrown by protesters.

The university said in a statement Wednesday that Sharon Gray, 31, was in the East African country for a meeting about her research when she was killed Tuesday while traveling in a car in the outskirts of the capital, Addis Ababa.

The university said what happened was unclear but spokesman Andy Fell confirmed to the Sacramento Bee that Gray was the American the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia confirmed was killed in an area that has seen months of deadly protests.

Another staff member was traveling with her but was not hurt, CBS Sacramento reports.

This is the first foreigner killed in the massive anti-government protests that have claimed the lives of hundreds of protesters since November 2015.