Malaysia Airlines MH17 Case to be Prosecuted in Netherlands

Dutch investigators collect debris from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, which crashed on July 16, 2014, killing all 298 aboard. An investigative team blamed a missile shot from rebel-controlled Ukraine for the crash, and Wednesday it was announced that suspects will be prosecuted in a Dutch court. Photo courtesy of Dutch Ministry of Defense. 

 

 

July 5 (UPI) -- The Dutch Foreign Ministry announced Wednesday that suspects in the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 will be prosecuted in a Dutch court.

An international criminal investigation determined in 2016 that a missile, fired from separatist-controlled territory in eastern Ukraine, struck the plane as it flew from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in July 2014. Russia disputed the findings, saying the missile was fired from a Ukrainian-controlled area.

The crash killed all 298 people, from 17 countries, aboard the plane.

The ministry announcement on behalf of the countries involved in the investigation -- Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine -- did not include the names of suspects.

"The [Joint Investigation Team] countries have now decided that the suspects should be prosecuted in the Netherlands, a process that will be rooted in ongoing international cooperation and support. This means that the team's cooperation will continue into the prosecution phase. Thanks to the MH17-treaty with Ukraine it will be possible for the prosecution to cover all the victims," the statement by the Netherlands Foreign Ministry said.
Investigators building the criminal case said that about 100 people were involved in the launch of the missile.

 *****By Ed Adamczyk (UPI)
 
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