Air Algerie plane carrying 116 Crashes in Niger republic

An Air Algerie flight traveling Algiers from Burkina Faso with 116 people aboard has crashed over Niger republic according to aviation officials in Algeria.

Flight AH0517 disappeared from radar Thursday while flying over the Sahara desert.
An Algerian official was quoted as saying the flight crashed while it was trying to avoid a massive sandstorm over the Sahara desert. There is no information about survivors. It is believed that all the 116 persons on board have died in the crash.