MH17 was hit by Russian missile
Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down by a missile from land in eastern Ukraine controlled by Russian-backed rebels, according to an international investigation.
Prosecutors said the missile launcher was taken to Ukraine from Russia and returned to Russia after the Russian-made Buk missile struck the Boeing 777, killing all 298 onboard.
MH17 was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.
Prosecutors from a Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team said they were not accusing Russia of being behind the downing of the passenger aircraft.
They said there were 100 people linked to the crash or the transport of the Buk missile, but they haven’t yet said who gave he order to move the launcher to eastern Ukraine or for it to be fired.
Russia has always disputed claims that the missile was fired by rebels in eastern Ukraine, but the investigation team, which consists of prosecutors from the Netherlands, Malaysia, Ukraine, Australia and Belgium, say they have narrowed the launch site down to a field near the village of Pervomaiskyi.
They claimed the site had been pinpointed by ‘many witnesses’.
"Based on the criminal investigation, we have concluded that flight MH17 was downed by a Buk missile of the series 9M83 that came from the territory of the Russian Federation," chief Dutch police investigator Wilbert Paulissen said.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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