Mali: We've Spotted Wreckage of Missing Plane

There's still no word on the fate of 116 people aboard an Air Algerie flight that went missing over Mali today, but multiple reports say wreckage has been spotted. The most credible comes via Reuters from Mali President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. "I have just been informed that the wreckage has been found between Aguelhoc and Kidal," he said, without providing more details. Earlier, French media also reported that wreckage had been seen, though in a spot much further to the west, notes the BBC.

Most of the passengers on the flight, an MD-83 owned by Swiftair, were from France (about 50) or Burkina Faso (about 25), reports the Guardian. Because of that, French authorities were heavily involved in the search for the jet, which lost contact with air-traffic controllers about 50 minutes after takeoff from the Burkina Faso capital of Ouagadougou. "Everything allows us to believe this plane crashed in Mali," said French President Francois Hollande, adding that the crew changed its flight path because of "particularly difficult weather conditions." (More plane crash stories.)