Ethiopian PM wins disputed poll

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has won May's bitterly disputed elections, official results show.

His Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front gained 296 seats out of 547, enough for a working majority.

At least 36 people died in protests against alleged fraud when police fired into the crowds. The opposition has complained of discrepancies.

The election body wants the vote to be re-run in 31 constituencies, but this will not affect the overall outcome.

The National Electoral Board called on all sides to accept the result.

"The parties should accept the final results which have come after an investigation process that was long but also transparent," said chairman Kemal Bedri.

But Berhanu Nega, of the opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), told Reuters news agency that his party rejected the outcome.

"We will not accept it. We will challenge it in court," he said.

Despite their anger at the way in which the elections were held, the opposition parties will be greatly strengthened in the new parliament.

They now hold 174 seats - compared with just 14 in the last parliament.

Re-runs of the vote are scheduled to be held in 32 constituencies on 21 August.

A further 23 seats in the Somali region are due on the same day.