ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Officials say heavy rain has been reported in the area where a plane carrying 116 people disappeared from radar today over the African country of Mali. The Air Algerie flight was on its way from neighboring Burkina Faso to Algeria.

France’s transport minister says the crew’s last message asked air control to change the plane’s route because of the heavy rains in the area.

The plane was being operated by the Spanish airline Swiftair. Burkina Faso’s transport minister says 50 French nationals were among those on board.

The plane had been missing for hours before the news was made public.

Mali is between Burkina Faso and Algeria. Unrest has plagued the northern part of Mali in recent years. But a senior French official says it seems unlikely that fighters in Mali would have the kind of weapons that could shoot down a plane.

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136-c-11-(Angela Charlton, AP correspondent)-“some other countries”-AP correspondent Angela Charlton reports the plane was carrying 116 people. (24 Jul 2014)

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135-c-14-(Angela Charlton, AP correspondent)-“capital of Algeria”-AP correspondent Angela Charlton reports a plane has gone missing over northern Mali. (24 Jul 2014)

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APPHOTO PW101: A television camera operator mounts a satellite dish on top of a van outside the Swiftair offices in Madrid, Spain, Thursday, July 24, 2014. A flight operated by Air Algerie and carrying 116 people from Burkina Faso to Algeria’s capital disappeared from radar early Thursday, the plane’s operator said. Swiftair, a private Spanish airline, said the plane carrying over 100 passengers and crew left Burkina Faso for Algiers at 0117 GMT Thursday (9:17 p.m. EDT Wednesday), but had not arrived at the scheduled time of 0510 GMT (1:10 a.m. EDT Thursday). (AP Photo/Paul White) (24 Jul 2014)

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