It's feared that at least 257 people have died in a plane crash in northern Algeria, the local defence ministry has advised today.
It's believed the aircraft, an Ilyushin Il-76, came down shortly after taking off from Boufarik military airport around 20 miles south of the capital Algiers in the morning. The aircraft was heading to Bechar in the south-west of the country, close to the Morocco border.
Among the dead are believed to be at least 26 members of the Polisario Front, an Algerian backed group that are seeking independence from Morocco for Western Sahara. Other passengers on the aircraft are, according to local media, army personnel along with some of their families. The defence ministry also confirmed that ten flight crew members were also killed.
The authorities are working to identify remains of those killed and an investigation of the cause of the crash has already begun.
