Algeria’s Defense Ministry says 257 people, mostly soldiers and members of their families, were killed when a military plane crashed in the North African country.
The plane crashed near Boufarik airport in northern Algeria on April 11, killing 247 passengers and 10 crew members, the ministry said in a statement.
It did not provide further details.
Twenty-six members of the Polisario Front were said to also be among the dead. The Algerian-backed group is fighting for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco.
The plane crashed minutes after taking off from Boufarik military airport.
The state news agency said the Soviet-designed Il-76 plane was headed for Bechar in southwestern Algeria.
The cause was not immediately known.
Boufarik is located some 30 kilometers from the Algerian capital, Algiers.