BBC News - Ethiopian Airlines jet crashes into sea off Beirut
An Ethiopian Airlines passenger plane with 90 people on board has crashed into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after take-off from Beirut airport.
Eyewitnesses say they saw a ball of fire in the sky before Addis Ababa-bound Flight ET409 fell into the sea after taking off in stormy weather.
At least 21 bodies have been found, and the airline's chief executive said there was no word of survivors.
Most of those on board were Lebanese or Ethiopian. There were also two Britons.
The UK Foreign Office said one of the Britons had dual nationality.
The other passengers included citizens of Turkey, France, Russia, Canada, Syria and Iraq, Ethiopian Airlines said in a statement on its website.
Among them was the wife of the French ambassador in Beirut, Marla Pietton.
Some of the foreign passengers are reported to be of Lebanese origin.
The plane, a Boeing 737-800, was carrying 82 passengers, including small children, and eight crew, Ethiopian Airlines said. This model can seat 189 passengers.
It disappeared from radar screens some five minutes after take-off in stormy weather at about 0200 local time, near the village of Naameh, about 3.5km (2 miles) from the coast.
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