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Wreckage of EgyptAir plane found in Mediterranean

Friday May 20 2016
EgyptAirPix

An image grab from a handout video released by the Egyptian Defence Ministry on May 20, 2016 shows the military taking part in a search mission in the Mediterranean Sea for the remains of an EgyptAir plane which crashed on May 19, 2016 with 66 people on board, as mystery surrounded its fate despite suspicions of terrorism. PHOTO | AFP

Egypt's military found wreckage Friday from the EgyptAir plane that crashed in the Mediterranean as investigators tried to unravel the mystery of why it swerved suddenly and plummeted into the sea.

Search teams spotted personal belongings of passengers and parts of the Airbus A320 about 290km north of Egypt's coastal city of Alexandria, a military spokesman said.

A body part, seats and luggage were among the objects discovered, according to Greece's Defence minister.

Egypt's Aviation minister said on Thursday that a "terrorist attack" was a more likely cause than technical failure for the plane's disappearance from radar screens on a flight from Paris to Cairo with 66 people on board.

But French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said there was "absolutely no indication" of why the flight came down.

Jihadist group

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"We're looking at all possibilities, but none is being favoured over the others because we have absolutely no indication on the causes," he told French television.

The tragedy raised fears of a repeat of the bombing of a Russian passenger jet by the Islamic State jihadist group over Egypt last October that killed all 224 people on board.

In Cairo, French and Airbus investigators prepared to meet their Egyptian counterparts on Friday to lay the groundwork for their investigation.

The plane disappeared between Karpathos and the Egyptian coast in the early hours of Thursday morning, without its crew sending a distress signal.

The aircraft had swerved sharply twice in Egyptian airspace before plunging 22,000 feet (6,700 metres) and disappearing from radar screens, according to Greek Defence Minister Panos Kammenos. (AFP)

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