Malaysian airliner MH17 crashed in Ukraine

[Natalka]

Dutch report suggests MH-17 shot down from ground

(Reuters) - Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 broke apart over Ukraine due to impact from a large number of fragments, the Dutch Safety Board said on Tuesday, in a report that Malaysia's prime minister and several experts said suggested it was shot down from the ground.

The report said MH17 crashed due to a "large number of high-energy objects" penetrating the fuselage. "There are no indications that the MH17 crash was caused by a technical fault or by actions of the crew," it said.

"The preliminary report suggests that high energy objects penetrated the aircraft and led it to break up midair," Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said in a statement. "This leads to the strong suspicion that a surface-to-air missile brought MH17 down, but further investigative work is needed before we can be certain," he added.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said it was still too early to assign blame: "We need to be careful not to draw conclusions too quickly," he told journalists. "Step-by-step, the experts are working to reach irrefutable conclusions."

A final report by the board is not expected until mid 2015. The Netherlands is also running a separate investigation into the possibility of criminal charges against suspected culprits.

Photographs of the wreckage detailed in the report showed multiple shrapnel impacts. A site visit would greatly help the investigation, said Tjibbe Joustra, head of the Safety Board.

"There are elements we are interested in. The cockpit is very important because a lot of those objects penetrated the cockpit," he said, adding that flight instruments also contain data not registered by the flight data recorders.

The early findings were based on data retrieved from the cockpit voice recorder, the flight data recorder, satellite and other images, and radar information. Joustra said investigators had found no evidence of tampering with the flight recorders, which were recovered by rebels and turned over to Malaysia.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0H40LM20140909

[Natalka]

Ukrainian searchers gather effects of Malaysia Flight 17 victims


THE HAGUE, Netherlands – The Dutch government says Ukrainian searchers have recovered belongings including passports, luggage, jewelry and children’s toys from the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.

The Security and Justice Ministry said in a statement that 40 members of the Ukrainian disaster response agency participated in a new round of searching at the wreckage site in Eastern Ukraine Monday. Four Dutch officials and an OSCE team were also present.

Eight forensic experts will fly to Ukraine to examine the belongings before they are returned to the Netherlands.

http://globalnews.ca/news/1612273/nt...t-crash-scene/

[Natalka]

Dutch salvage team 'unable to start'


A Dutch effort to salvage wreckage from the Malaysia Airlines crash site in eastern Ukraine has been unable to start because no deal has been reached with local rebel groups.

The Dutch experts arrived at the MH17 crash site early on Tuesday.
However, they have refused to talk to the rebels, relying instead on European security officials to broker a deal.

The head of the repatriation team, Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg, told Dutch broadcaster NOS that the salvage team was ready to start work removing wreckage but there was no agreement yet between the European security body OSCE and local Ukrainians.

However, the salvage team did discover more human remains at sites where fires broke out after the crash, Dutch media reported.

At the so-called "burn sites", investigators also found personal effects. The head of the repatriation team Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg said these should be returned to the victims' relatives.

Tuesday's discoveries have been flown to Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, for forensic examination.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30000967



Remains of nine of the 298 victims have not yet been found.

Meanwhile, the international monitoring group, the OSCE, has warned violence in eastern Ukraine was escalating.
OSCE spokesman Michael Bociurkiw said heavy shelling in nearby Donetsk city had meant investigators had to leave the site.


Back in the Netherlands, a national memorial for the MH17 victims has been held.

Flags flew at half mast across the Netherlands and in Dutch diplomatic missions abroad, four months after MH17 was downed over war-torn eastern Ukraine in July.

More than 1,600 family and friends of those killed attended a commemoration in Amsterdam, including King Willem Alexander, Queen Maxima and Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte.

Ambassadors from some of the 16 other countries that lost citizens in the disaster also attended.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-1...h-site/5884306

[Natalka]

(Reuters) - Local emergency services have recovered human remains, aircraft parts and personal belongings from the site where Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine in July, Dutch authorities said on Sunday.

Dutch inspectors had hoped to examine the crash site themselves, following the downing of the flight on July 17 that killed 298 people, two thirds of them Dutch citizens.

But they remain concerned about the safety of their staff in the conflict zone, held by Moscow-backed rebels who are fighting government forces, and decided to commission the local State Emergency Service to search the area further after an initial operation recovered many of the bodies.

Underlining the difficult security situation in the area, Dutch authorities said a mortar had landed 1,500 metres (yards) from the crash site on Sunday.

Pieces of wreckage were taken to the train station in nearby Torez and have been partially loaded on to wagons, the Dutch government said.
The recovery process is expected to take several days, with the wreckage eventually being taken to the Netherlands.
The air safety inspectorate intends to reconstruct parts of the airliner in the Netherlands in order to ascertain the cause of the crash.

"The crash area is large, so we do not intend to recover all the wreckage," said Safety Board spokesman Wim van der Weegen. "We've got a specific number of items we would like to recover."
Around a dozen Dutch officials are on the site supervising the work of Ukrainian emergency services, van der Weegen said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0J00AA20141116

[Natalka]

The remains of flight MH17 arrived at a air force hanger in Holland today as experts try to determine exactly what brought down the passenger jet.

The Dutch Safety Board said the wreckage would be photographed, scanned and a reconstruction of the airliner would be attempted.

However, its head Tjibbe Joustr said parts of the Boeing 777 are missing and that it will take several months to try to piece the plane together.

He said: "There were also some parts missing.

"We know that they were missing, but we think that we can be more than satisfied about the amount of wreckage we have."

A report on the cause of the crash is not expected until the middle of next year.

The wreckage of the plane arrived at a Dutch military base in the town of Gilze-Rijen earlier today watched by dozens of relatives of the victims.

Eight flatbed trucks transported the remains of the Boeing 777 which was under covers.

Ukrainian emergency services operating under Dutch supervision picked up wreckage considered most valuable for the inquiry during a six-day operation in November.

Bits of fuselage could help determine what direction the missile came from.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/...eckage-Ukraine

[Natalka]

16:11 28.03.2015 Plane carrying remains of Malaysian Boeing crash victims leaves Kharkiv for Eindhoven

Acting deputy head of Kharkiv regional state administration Vadym Hlushko took part in the mourning service, the administration's press service told a correspondent of Interfax-Ukraine.
The delivery of the human remains has been accompanied by the representatives of the embassies of Australia and of the Netherlands, under supervision of Hans van de Ven, commander of the team's combat unit probing into the MH 17 crash.
Three containers with the human remains are on board.
Meanwhile, plane debris will remain in Kharkiv. Probably they will be delivered to the Netherlands by car.

http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/257615.html



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Newly found remains victims #MH17 arrive in #Netherlands with respectful reception.

[Natalka]

At the site in Ukraine

"Never forgive. Never forget"

[Natalka]

17 April

Air crash investigators have recovered more body parts from the site where MH17 fell in eastern Ukraine after the Boeing 777 was shot out of the sky nine months ago.
The Dutch-led team this week also found personal possessions including jewellery after the plane was downed by a suspected Russian-made BUK missile, killing all 298 passengers and crew on July 17, 2014.
In all, 16 containers of fragments of the Malaysia Airlines plane were filled so far this week.

The finds came several days after MailOnline revealed how possibly key evidence and personal possessions were left lying in fields so long after a crash which shocked the world.
MailOnline also found a charred passport of a Malaysian mother killed in the horror.
Relatives of Mabel Anthonysamy Soosai, 45, whose husband and son were also killed, called for urgent action to clear the site, return items to bereaved families and bring those responsible for the carnage to justice.
'It broke my heart to see the picture, her passport still in the debris of the plane,' said her brother Clement, 47, in Kuala Lumpur.
'But thank you so much for finding it and telling us about it.'
Also spotted at the site by MailOnline were a bracelet made of beads, a pair of sunglasses, ripped clothing and random pages from guidebooks in a reminder that many of the murdered passengers were heading to Kuala Lumpur on holiday.

Many small parts from the plane - such as controllers for the in-flight entertainment systems - were visible among MH17's burned remains.
Investigators say they were prevented from working properly in the locations where MH17 hit the ground due to fierce fighting between pro-Moscow rebels and Ukrainian military forces.
The new finds of human remains were collected this week by the Dutch - working with Malaysian, Australian and Ukrainian colleagues - at a site previously inaccessible to the investigators, it was revealed.
Head of the Dutch recovery mission Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg said: 'More remains have been found in both parts of the so-called "burn sites."'
Jean Fransman, spokesman for the Dutch Department of Justice, added: 'The mission was again able to recover human remains and personal effects at two sites.'
A statement said that 'personal effects were given to the members of the mission by the local population - it was jewellery'.

The latest search operation had resumed yesterday after being halted for winter, and centred around the Petropavlivka, some 10 kilometres (6.25 miles) west of Grabove and Granovo where most of the debris fell.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ssessions.html

[Natalka]

18 April

MH17 wreckage ‘stolen’ and moved to Russia

Representatives of those nations that lost citizens in the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine last July have been told wreckage has been stolen and moved to a museum in Russia. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop was this week called to a meeting of the 17-strong group of what has become known as the “grieving countries” and told by her Ukrainian counterpart, Pavlo Klimkin, that a media report about the wreckage having been stolen was true.
Ms Bishop said she asked Dutch investigators and The Netherlands government to investigate the claim as a matter of urgency and, if true, to demand the wreckage be returned.
She also urged all the nations involved to determine how those responsible could be found and brought to justice.


Mr Klimkin told the group his government had photographic evidence suggesting the report of the theft was true, Ms Bishop said.
He said it appeared that a section of the plane had been provided by residents near the crash site to Russian-backed rebels and then moved to a museum in Russia. The museum is focused on Russian military achievements during World War II.
“For those (Russian) claims to have any credibility, they’ve go to hand over evidence,” Ms Bishop said. “Clearly there’s a level of urgency about is. We want the investigations concluded as soon as possible and we want the reports so we can then consider the options. So if there is a piece of the plane that has been taken to Russia, it must be returned.”

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/in-d...-1227308532093

[Natalka]

MH17 disaster: Search for remains and wreckage ends

30 April 2015

Investigators say they have finished recovering human remains and wreckage from the site of the MH17 plane crash in eastern Ukraine.
A final flight carrying seven coffins will arrive in the Netherlands on Saturday.
Personal belongings such as watches, rings, and passports have also been found.

Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg, head of the Dutch-led mission, said the team had done "everything humanly possible" in the recovery process on Wednesday.
He said many more body parts had been discovered, and the team was hopeful the finds would allow the final two victims to be identified.

DNA tests will be carried out on the remains when they have been returned to the Netherlands.
Investigators have not ruled out finding more remains or wreckage in the future.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32534501

[Natalka]

Euromaidan PR @Euro maidanPR · 5h 5 hours ago 7 coffins w/ #MH17 victims remains are being sent to the Netherlands from #Kharkiv airport.

[Natalka]

One year later, what do we know about the MH17 tragedy?



http://euromaidanpress.com/2015/07/1...-mh17-downing/

[Natalka]

MH17 Ukraine disaster: Services held to mark anniversary


Memorial services are being held to mark the first anniversary of the MH17 air disaster, in which 298 people died.


Villagers close to the crash site in Ukraine are holding a ceremony, as will the Netherlands where most of the passengers were from.
A memorial stone has been unveiled in Grabove, the village closest to the crash site in Ukraine, ahead of its memorial service.


Hrabove, where #MH17 fell. Memorial donated by local Donetsk man says 298 died here, "innocent victims of civil war."

And in the Dutch city of Nieuwegein later, the names of all the country's 193 victims will be read aloud by their family members.


Australia has already held its memorial for the 39 citizens it lost.
Australia's national memorial service was held in Parliament House in Canberra. A plaque with the names of the victims was unveiled in the gardens - it was set in soil brought back from Ukraine by an Australian police officer.


In Malaysia, a memorial service was held in Kuala Lumpur on 11 July - because the anniversary of the disaster comes at the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which is traditionally a holiday.
Each victim was named and then honoured with a moment of silence.






Those who attended the service pinned sprigs of Australia's national floral emblem, wattle, on a large wreath.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33562860

[Natalka]

One year on, MH17 evidence against separatists appears overwhelming

A growing body of evidence suggests Russian-backed separatists shot down Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 after mistaking it for a Ukrainian military plane

Two official investigations into the MH17 disaster - a technical air accident inquiry led by the Dutch Safety Board, and a separate criminal investigation by Dutch, Australian, Belgian, Malaysian and Ukrainian detectives - are under way.

The Safety Board is expected to release its final report in October. The criminal investigation is expected to run on at least until the end of the year.
Wim de Bruin, a spokesman for the Dutch chief prosecutor's office, declined to discuss details but said the criminal investigation's final dossier for the court would give a "detailed account of what happened".
"We didn't expect to get as far as we are now," he said. "There will be charges of murder and possibly charges of war crimes."
Malaysian and Dutch diplomats at the United Nations have drafted a resolution to create an international tribunal to bring to justice those responsible.


Much more here - detailed information on possible evidence

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...rwhelming.html

[Natalka]

Euromaidan PR ‏@EuromaidanPR 3h3 hours ago

The wall of stuffed toys at the #MH17 commemoration ceremony in #Nieuwegein, the Netherlands



KLM worker pays respect for #MH17 victims at a makeshift memorial in Schiphol airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands