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| Edited By: DNA Web Team |Source: DNA webdesk |Updated: Jul 29, 2014, 04:00 PM IST
All 295 people on board a Malaysia Airlines plane were feared dead, on Thursday, after the aircraft was reportedly shot down over war-torn eastern Ukraine near the Russian border, nearly four months after the mysterious disappearance of Flight MH370 in the Indian Ocean. Flight MH17, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777, was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur carrying 280 passengers and 15 crew members. The passenger liner came down close to the town of Shaktarsk in Ukraine's rebellion-wracked region of Donetsk after disappearing from the radar, and teams from the emergency services were trying to reach the scene, Russian media quoted an unnamed security source as saying. Reports also say that it was a ground-to-air missile or surface-to-air missile that shot down the plane.
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Black boxes show MH17 crash caused by rocket shrapnel, says Ukraine
Black boxes recovered from downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in rebel-held east Ukraine show shrapnel from a rocket explosion caused the passenger jet to crash, a Ukrainian security official said Monday.
International investigators "indicated that data from flight recorders show that the reason for the destruction and crash of the plane was massive explosive decompression arising from multiple shrapnel perforations from a rocket explosion," said Andriy Lysenko, spokesman for Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council. Read more
Downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 'may amount to a war crime', says United Nations
The downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 "may amount to a war crime", the United Nations said Monday, adding that fighting in east Ukraine has claimed over 1,100 lives with both government and rebel forces using heavy weaponry in built-up areas. Read more
Fighting around the site of the Malaysian airliner downed in Ukraine prevented a visit by international experts on Sunday, although Malaysia said separatists had agreed to allow in international police and investigators. Alexander Hug, deputy head for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE) monitoring mission in Ukraine, told reporters: "We heard indications there's fighting going on." Read more
Russia should not host 2018 World Cup after MH17 shootdown, says UK deputy PM Nick Clegg
British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg joined calls on Sunday for Russia to be stripped of the World Cup in 2018 following the shooting down of flight MH17 over Ukraine. The Liberal Democrat leader, whose party is the junior partner in Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron's coalition government, said sporting events should be part of a new package of EU sanctions against Moscow. Read more
First MH17 victim identified, grieving relatives visit crash site in Ukraine
Forensic experts have identified the first of 298 people killed in the MH17 disaster, the Dutch government said, as grieving relatives defied safety concerns to pay an emotional visit to the crash site in eastern Ukraine. A truce has been called in the immediate area around the site by both the Kiev forces and pro-Russian separatists, but combat was raging just 60 kilometres (35 miles) away, with loud explosions heard at regular intervals in western and northern suburbs of rebel stronghold Donetsk. Read more
Malaysia PM Najib Razak says to discuss access to MH-17 crash site with Dutch
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Saturday he would meet Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte next week to discuss how to secure full access for investigators to the site in Ukraine where a Malaysian airliner was downed. A statement issued by his office said Najib would fly to the Netherlands to discuss the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17 and the deployment of 30 investigators it said were needed to conduct a full investigation. Read more
White House: Vladimir Putin, Russia are culpable in the downing of Malaysian plane
The White House said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was "culpable" in the downing of a Malaysian plane over a the war zone in Ukraine and reiterated it was working with the European Union and G7 to impose further sanctions on Moscow. White House spokesman Josh Earnest made some of his strongest comments since the plane was shot down, tying the incident to Russia, which the United States has criticized for providing arms to Ukrainian separatists. Read more
Russia says Malaysian airliner's flight recorders unaffected by slight damage
Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee said on Friday the black box flight recorders from the Malaysian airliner downed over Ukraine had suffered slight damage but this would not affect the data. Read More
Russia says will cooperate with MH17 probe led by Netherlands
Russia will cooperate with the investigation into the downing of a Malaysian airliner a week ago and is satisfied that the Netherlands, rather than Ukraine, is leading the effort, the country's ambassador to Malaysia said on Thursday. Liudmila Vorobyeva also rejected suggestions that the pro-Russian separatists blamed by Western governments for shooting down Flight MH17 possessed a Russian-made anti-aircraft missile, and said the rebels lacked the training to use such a system. Read more
Ukraine rebel commander acknowledges fighters had BUK missile that shot down MH17
A powerful Ukrainian rebel leader has confirmed that pro-Russian separatists had an anti-aircraft missile of the type Washington says was used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 and it could have originated in Russia. In an interview with Reuters, Alexander Khodakovsky, commander of the Vostok Battalion, acknowledged for the first time since the airliner was brought down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday that the rebels did possess the BUK missile system and said it could have been sent back subsequently to remove proof of its presence. Read more
Dutch in mourning as first MH17 bodies arrive in Netherlands
The bodies of the first victims from a Malaysian airliner shot down over Ukraine last week arrived on Wednesday at a military base in the Netherlands – a nation in shock and sorrow. Bells pealed and flags flew at half mast in memory of the 298 people killed when flight MH17 came down in an area of eastern Ukraine held by Russian-backed separatists, in the first national day of mourning since wartime Queen Wilhelmina died in 1962. Read more
Pilots of Air India plane heard Ukraine ATC asking Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 to change direction
According to Pravda News (pravdanews.info) just before the collapse of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, an Air India Dreamliner enroute Birmingham from New Delhi heard the Ukraine ATC ask MH17 to change route. The original story appeared on Aerotelegraph.com. Interestingly, the two flights - Air India and Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 - were only 25 kilometres apart at the time of the instructions from Air Traffic Control Ukraine. This amounts to a flying time of just 90 seconds. The Air India flight was trailing the MH17. Read more
#MH17 crash: Who pulled the trigger?
Ukraine's director of informational security, Vitaly Nayda has reportedly said that he is certain that the Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 was shot down by a Russian. According to the CNN, he stated that he has evidence that shows that a well-trained, well-equipped and educated officer attacked the plane deliberately. Conversations taped several minutes before the flight went down show that someone informed a Russian officer that the plane was coming with a constant speed in a constant direction. He also alleged that they must have known that the plane was not a fighter jet but a commercial flight. Read more
Rebels likely downed Malaysian jet MH17 'by mistake,' US officials say
The US government believes that pro-Russian separatists most likely shot down a Malaysia Airlines jet "by mistake," not realising it was a civilian passenger flight, US intelligence officials said on Tuesday. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the "most plausible explanation" for the destruction of the plane was that the separatists fired a Russian-made SA-11 missile at it after mistaking it for another kind of aircraft. "Five days into it (following the crash) it does appear to be a mistake," one of the officials said in a briefing for reporters. Read more
14:00 PM IST Tuesday, 22 July 2014
Russia questions Ukraine and US over Malaysian Airlines #MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine
Russia on Monday released military monitoring reports which showed a military jet, SU-25 which belonged to Kiev following Malaysian Airline's MH17 some time before it was shot down in Ukraine. According to the reports, the jet was merely three to five kilometers from Boeing which was carrying 300 people. This release led to Russia posing yet another set of questions to Ukraine and the US regarding the circumstance of the tragedy as reported by Russia Today. Read More
* Rebels hand over MH17 black boxes to Malaysian officials
Rebels controlling the crash site of Malaysian flight MH17 today handed over the plane's black boxes, and declared a localised truce to allow international experts full access to the forensic minefield in east Ukraine. Both black boxes, which record cockpit activity and flight data, were handed to Malaysian officials by the prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, Alexander Borodai, in front of scores of journalists. Read more
13:18 PM IST Tuesday, 22 July 2014
Bodies leave Ukraine war zone, truce called at #MH17 crash site
A train carrying the remains of 280 people killed in the Malaysian plane disaster was finally allowed to leave a rebel-held region in eastern Ukraine as the militants declared a truce today around the crash site.
Fighting erupts in Ukraine as crash investigators arrive
Ukrainian army tanks were reported to be launching an assault to break pro-Russian rebels' hold on the eastern city of Donetsk on Monday in the first major outbreak of hostilities in the area since Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down last week.
A separatist leader said Ukrainian government forces were trying to break into Donetsk and fighting was under way near the railway station. Sergei Kavtaradze, of the rebels' self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, said at least four tanks and armoured vehicles were trying to break through into the city. A Ukrainian military spokesman said the operation was in progress but would not comment on reports of troops entering Donetsk. "The active phase of the anti-terrorist operation is continuing. We are not about to announce any troop movements," Vladyslav Seleznyov said. Read More
Vladimir Putin demands access for experts at Ukraine crash site
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday the downing of a Malaysian airliner in east Ukraine must not be used for political ends and urged separatists to allow international experts access to the crash site. "Everything must be done to guarantee the security of international experts at the site of the tragedy," Putin, wearing a dark suit and tie, said in an unusual televised address standing alone by a desk in an office. Putin, who looked drawn, reiterated his belief that the incident would not have happened if Ukrainian government forces had not ended a truce and resumed a military campaign against the pro-Russian rebellion in eastern Ukraine. Read More
Russia's Vladimir Putin should understand "it's enough already"- Ukraine PM Arseny Yatseniuk
President Vladimir Putin should understand that "it's enough already", Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said on Monday, criticising the Russian leader for handing weapons to rebels fighting Kiev's forces in eastern Ukraine. Read More
Netherlands' identification team arrives in Ukraine's Donetsk to identify MH17 victims
Three members of a Dutch Disaster Victims Identification team arrived in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk on Monday, the first international investigators to reach rebel-held territory since the airliner crashed last week. They declined to give any details of their plans but a representative for the rebels in the Donetsk region said rebel leaders were prepared to meet and assist them in reaching the site or the refrigerated train where some bodies are being kept. Read More
Vladimir Putin demands access for international experts at Malaysia jet crash site in east Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday the downing of a Malaysian airliner in east Ukraine must not be used for political ends and urged separatists to allow international experts access to the crash site. "Everything must be done to guarantee the security of international experts at the site of the tragedy," Putin said in televised comments. Read More
Rebels take control of 219 bodies recovered from #MH17 debris
Pro-Moscow insurgents today took control of the 219 bodies recovered so far from the debris of the downed Malaysian jet, even as global pressure mounted on Russian President Vladimir Putin to ensure unfettered access to the crash site in Ukraine's rebel-held region.
A total of 192 bodies and eight body fragments had been loaded onto a refrigerated train stationed in the town of Torez near the crash site, RIA Novosti news agency reported. Emergency workers retrieved 27 more bodies from the crash site later, the country's Deputy Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said. The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 carrying 298 people was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur as it was downed on Thursday between Krasni Luch in Luhansk region and Shakhtarsk in the neighbouring region of Donetsk. Read More
Ukraine accuses rebels of hiding plane crash evidence
Ukraine on Sunday accused separatist rebels of hiding evidence that a Russian missile was used to shoot down a Malaysian airliner, while Britain said Moscow faced "pariah" status and the threat of further economic sanctions. At the biggest crash site, where emergency workers had bagged dozens of bodies on Saturday, all had been taken away on Sunday morning. Empty, bloodstained military stretchers that had been used to carry them lay by the road. With Western anger rising at the apparently disrespectful treatment of the bodies by pro-Russian rebels controlling the crash site, nearly 200 corpses had been put on a refrigerated train at Torez, 15 km (9 miles) away. Read More
"Black boxes" from Ukraine crash site, under "our control" say the Rebels
A separatist leader said on Sunday items, "presumably" the black boxes from the downed Malaysian airliner, had been found and brought to the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, where they were under "our control". Read More
France, Germany, Britain to press Vladimir Putin on opening crash site
France, Germany and Britain will press Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday to ensure that separatists in Ukraine allow investigators free access to the site of the Malaysian Airlines MH17 crash, the French president's office said. Read More
15:20 PM IST Sunday, 20 July 2014
Ukrainian investigators found 196 bodies at #MH17 crash site
Ukrainian investigators have found 196 bodies at the crash site where a Malaysian passenger plane carrying 298 people was brought down by a missile in pro-Russia rebels-held eastern part of the country. Read more
12:30 PM IST Sunday, 20 July 2014
West toughens calls on Russia to cooperate over downed Malaysian plane
Ukraine accused Russia and pro-Moscow rebels on Saturday of destroying evidence to cover up their guilt in the shooting down of a Malaysian airliner that has intensified a showdown between the Kremlin and Western powers.
As militants kept international monitors away from wreckage and scores of bodies festered for a fourth day on Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged the rebels to cooperate and insisted that a U.N.-mandated investigation must not leap to conclusions. Moscow denies involvement and has pointed a finger at Kiev's military. Read more
11:50 IST Sunday, 20 July 2014
If rebels found responsible, we do not need Russia more than it needs us:David Cameron
British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Saturday that if it were proven that Ukrainian separatists were behind the downing of a Malaysian jet carrying 298 passengers, Russia would be to blame for having destabilised the country. Read more
Investigators must get access to MH17 crash site, US Secretary of State John Kerry tells Russia
US Secretary of State John Kerry, in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Saturday, stressed that investigators must get full access to the site of the Malaysia Airlines crash in Ukraine, the State Department said. Read more
11:40 IST Sunday, 20 July 2014
Malaysia lottery outlets halt hot bets on #MH17-related numbers
Some Malaysian shops selling lottery tickets and illegal gambling syndicates have rejected "hot" bets on numbers linked to the downing of a Malaysia Airlines airliner.
Da Ma Cai, Toto and Magnum outlets had stopped taking bets on the numbers 1717 and 777 since Friday, the Sunday Star said.
11: 15 sunday, 20 July 2014
Singapore Airlines apologises for insensitive social media posts on MH17
Singapore Airlines (SIA) has apologised for its "insensitive" social media postings following the crash of Malaysia Airlines aircraft MH17 in eastern Ukraine that left 298 people dead Read more
11:20 IST Sunday, 20 July 2014
Britain says other sanctions available against Russia following plane disaster
Britain said on Saturday that a range of further sanctions were available for use against Russia following the downing of a Malaysian aircraft, and the country's defence minister urged Moscow to "get out of Ukraine." "There's a range of other sanctions available, cutting off more links with Russia. He (Russian President Vladimir Putin) needs to trade with the West and relies on the City of London," Defence Minister Michael Fallon told the Mail on Sunday in an article published on the newspaper's website late on Saturday.
International AIDS society confirms 6 delegates died in MH17 crash, contrary to earlier rumours of 100 deaths
International AIDS Society President Francoise Barre-Sinousi on Saturday said that at least six delegates heading to attend a global AIDS conference here were killed in the Malaysian plane crash in eastern Ukraine. Barre-Sinoussi said that Joep Lange, former president of the International AIDS Society and a well-known HIV researcher from the Netherlands, was also killed in the crash. Read more
Ukraine and pro-Russian rebels agree to create security zone around MH17 crash site: Kiev
Ukraine and pro-Russian rebels have agreed to set up a security zone around the crash site of the Malaysian jet MH17 that was apparently shot down, Ukraine's security service chief said on Saturday. Internationally mediated talks "concluded with an agreement to set up a 20-kilometre security zone so that Ukraine could fulfil the most important thing -- identify the bodies (and) hand them over to relatives," Ukrainian Security Service head Valentyn Nalyvaychenko said in televised remarks. Read more
Malaysia PM Najib Razak's step-grandmother was on #MH17
Prime Minister Najib Razak's step-grandmother was on board the Malaysia Airlines passenger jet that crashed in violence-wracked Ukraine, the country's defence minister confirmed today. Hishammuddin Hussein, a cousin of Najib's, said 83-year-old Sri Siti Amirah was "on the flight". Siti Amirah was also Hishammuddin's step-grandmother. "Pls pray 4 her," he wrote on his Twitter feed above a photo of her in an Islamic headscarf. Read more
A day after, faces of doomed Malaysia airline #MH17 victims emerge
Dutch families jetting off to exotic destinations, more than 100 AIDS experts, British football fans and a twice unlucky Australian family were among victims of the doomed Malaysia Airlines plane that crashed in eastern Ukraine. As the true horror of the fate of flight MH17 likely shot down in separatist-held territory near the Russian border yesterday continue to unfold a day later, so did the stories behind its victims. "It was my brother and best friend," said a distraught Sander Essers, 66, who lost his brother Peter, sister-in-law Jolette Neusink and their two children Emma, 20 and Valentijn, 17 in the crash. "I spoke to my brother 20 minutes before he boarded the flight," an emotional Essers told AFP. Read more
Barack Obama reaches out to global leaders for investigation on #MH17
Hours after blaming Russia-baked Ukrainian separatists for the shooting down of a Malaysian Airline Plane that killed nearly 300 people, US President Barack Obama has called on his counterparts seeking an impartial international investigation. In separate phone calls with Obama British Prime Minister David Cameroon; German Chancellor Angela Merkel; and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, agreed on a prompt, full, unimpeded and transparent international investigation, the White House said in a statement. "They (Obama and Merkel) reaffirmed that all parties must guarantee international investigators full, secure, and unfettered access to the incident site to conduct a thorough and credible investigation without delay. "They also noted the necessity of all evidence remaining intact and in Ukraine," the White House said. Read more
Barack Obama says Europe should see downed jet #MH17 as 'wake-up call'
President Barack Obama said on Friday the downing of a Malaysian jetliner in a Ukrainian region controlled by Russian-backed separatists should be a "wake-up call" for the West in its drive to hold Moscow accountable for a crisis that appears to be at a turning point. While stopping short of blaming Russia for Thursday's crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH 17, in which 298 people died, Obama accused Russia of failing to stop the violence that made it possible to shoot down the plane. The United States has said the jetliner was hit by a surface-to-air missile fired from rebel territory. Read more
Britain says likely that separatists shot down Malaysia airline
A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron said the evidence suggested that separatists had shot down the airliner with a surface-to-air missile fired from Torez, in an area of eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian separatists. Read more
* Barack Obama blames Russia-backed separatists for plane tragedy
President Barack Obama today said the US believes that a Malaysian jetliner was shot down by surface-to-air missiles from an area inside Ukraine that is controlled by Russia-backed separatists and sought a credible international probe into the global tragedy that claimed 298 lives. "Here is what we know so far. Evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile that was launched from an area that is controlled by Russia-backed separatists inside of Ukraine," he said. "It's too early to guess what the intentions of those who launched these missiles. What we know right now, that a surface to air missile was fired. The shot was taken within the territory that is under the control of the separatists," Obama said, adding that the US is talking to the international community on this issue. Read More
* Barack Obama says one American was aboard downed plane in Ukraine
One American was among the 298 people killed when a Malaysian Airlines flight was brought down over eastern Ukraine, President Barack Obama said on Friday. Obama identified the American passenger on Flight MH-17 as Quinn Lucas Schansman. A White House official said Schansman held dual US-Dutch citizen ship. No further information about him was immediately available. Read More
* Barack Obama calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine
Barack Obama says it is not possible for the Ukraine separatists to function how they have without sophisticated training and equipment from Russia. He continues to say, if Putin makes a decision not to allow armaments and flow of fighters to Ukraine, then it will stop. He says that Putin has the most control over the violent situation in Ukraine. Read More
* PM Narendra Modi writes to Netherlands counterpart Mark Rutte expressing sorrow over death of his country's nationals in the Malaysian plane tragedy
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today wrote to his Netherlands counterpart Mark Rutte condoling the death of Dutch nationals in the Malaysian air tragedy. "I was shocked and deeply saddened by the news of the very tragic and unfortunate loss of nearly 300 lives in the Malaysian airliner crash in Ukraine. As more than half of those who perished in the crash were from the Netherlands, this terrible tragedy must be particularly painful to you and the people of your country," Modi said in a letter to Rutte. The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flight MH17 was blown up over Eastern Ukraine by a sophisticated BAK surface-to-air missile yesterday believed to be fired by pro-Russia rebels. Read More
* Signals intercepts reveal rebels claiming responsibility
Ukraine's security agency has claimed that they have intercepted phone calls between Russian military officers and pro-Russian separatists with the rebels claiming responsibility for shooting down a Malaysian plane killing all 298 people on board, a media report said today. Read More
* Ukraine's Petro Poroshenko talks to Angela Merkel, David Cameron airline investigation
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko informed German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday about the international team investigating the circumstances of Malaysian airliner tragedy, his press service said. Read More
* Pro-Russian rebels welcome OSCE, Kiev experts at Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crash site
Pro-Russian separatists said on Friday they welcomed international and Ukrainian experts coming to the site of the downed Malaysian airliner, denying government reports they were preventing a search and rescue mission.The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a security and rights body, later said about 30 of its staff had arrived at the scene by helicopter. Ukrainian officials say the location where the airliner came down in rebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine has complicated efforts to determine what caused the crash that killed all 298 people on board. Donetsk's governor, Serhiy Taruta, said the rebels were impeding the work of experts and had declared a desire to transfer the airliner's black boxes to Russia, despite Moscow saying it would not take the flight recorders. Read More
* Angela Merkel challenges Vladimir Putin after Ukraine crash but wary on further sanctions
Germany's Angela Merkel challenged Moscow's attempt to pin the downing of a Malaysian airliner on Ukraine, pointing to Russia as a source of separatists' weapons. But she said it was too soon to talk about retaliatory measures. The chancellor said there was evidence that the Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777, which crashed into a field in Ukraine killing all 298 people on board, had been shot down. Read More
* FBI investigators headed to Ukraine after Malaysian Airline crash
US investigators are preparing to head to Ukraine to assist in the aftermath of a Malaysian airliner that was shot down over eastern Ukraine with 298 people on board, an official said on Friday. FBI and US National Transportation Safety Board personnel are headed to the region to serve in an advisory role for the investigation of Thursday's incident, the US official said. Read more
* Downing of Malaysian plane in Ukraine triggers global outrage
Global shock and outrage mounted today over the downing of a Malaysian Airlines passenger jet killing all 298 people on board as the needle of suspicion pointed to pro-Russian Ukraine rebels who may have shot it, triggering a blame game. Read More
* West should not rush to blame Russia for downed airline - Xinhua
China's state news agency warned on Friday against rushing to implicate Russia in the downing of a Malaysian airliner over eastern Ukraine, but said those responsible must be brought to justice for the "intolerable terrorist attack". Read more
* Putin calls for ceasefire to begin peace negotiations
Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Friday for a ceasefire by pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian government forces fighting in eastern Ukraine to allow for negotiations."Direct talks between the opposing sides must be established as soon as possible. All sides in the conflict must swiftly halt fighting and begin peace negotiations," Putin said at a meeting with Russian Orthodox Church leaders at a monastery Sergiev Posad, near Moscow. Read More
* Nationalities of four passengers of Malaysian Airlines still unknown
Malaysia Airlines said on Friday it had determined the nationalities of all but four of the passengers aboard its flight MH17 which crashed in eastern Ukraine. Read more
* World figures comment on downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17
World leaders have demanded an international investigation into the shooting down of a Malaysian airliner with 298 people on board over eastern Ukraine in a tragedy that could mark a pivotal moment in the worst crisis between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Read more
* Malaysian Airlines: Australian family loses members in both MH370 and MH17 tragedies
An Australian couple who lost a son and daughter-in-law on a Malaysian Airlines jet that disappeared in March are again mourning after more relatives were killed when their plane was downed in Ukraine, media reported on Friday. Read More
Malaysia Airlines official says next kin of each passenger to be given $5000 for initial expenses.
Russia says will not take "black boxes" from airliner downed in Ukraine
"Despite what Kiev is again saying, we do not plan to take these (black) boxes," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. Read more
* Spokesman for Ukraine's Security Council says no missiles in Ukraine's armoury have been fired.
Further, the spokesman for Ukraine's Defence Ministry said Malaysian Airliner was out of range of Ukrainian anti-aircraft systems. No missiles were deployed during anti-terrorist operation in Ukraine, he said. Read more
* Ukraine rescuers recover 181 bodies at Malaysian Airlines plane crash site
Rescuers have recovered as many as 181 bodies so far at the site of the Malaysian airliner crash in eastern Ukraine, an official at Kiev's Foreign Ministry told a briefing on Friday. Andriy Sibiga said the bodies would probably be transported to the nearby Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, which is under the control of the central government. Read more
* Malaysia defends downed plane's flight path, airworthiness
Malaysia today defended the flight path taken by the crashed Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, confirming that the plane's systems were functioning normally before it was shot down by a missile over Ukraine killing all 298 people on board. Transport minister Liong Tiong Lai told a press conference here that the path was approved by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, and by the countries whose airspace the route passed through. He said the International Air Transportation Association had also stated that the airspace the aircraft was traversing was unrestricted. "15 out of 16 airlines in the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines fly this route over Ukraine. European airlines also use the same route, and traverse the same airspace. In the hours before the incident, a number of other passenger aircraft from different carriers used the same route,"he said. Read more
* Downing of Malaysia Airlines flight #MH17 puts spotlight on Buk missile system
As Russia and Ukraine trade blame over the apparent shooting down of a Malaysian airliner, they appear to agree on one thing: the type of Soviet-era missile that brought it down. But if an SA-11 Buk missile, known as "Gadfly" in NATO, struck the aircraft and killed all 298 on board, that won't solve the mystery of who did it: Russia, Ukraine and Russian-speaking rebels have all claimed the missile in their arsenals. Read more
* Malaysia Airlines jet crash insurance may be complex, lengthy
Insurance on the Malaysian airliner brought down over Ukraine is likely to pay out relatively quickly if the cause of the crash is determined, but observers say settling insurance for the loss of 298 lives and other liability could be complex and lengthy. Malaysia Airlines said flight MH-17 disappeared at 1415 GMT as it flew over eastern Ukraine toward the Russian border, bound for Asia. Flight tracking data indicated it was cruising at 33,000 feet when it lost contact with air traffic controllers, apparently struck by a missile. Read more
* READ: Inside Malaysia Airlines, tears and shock as tragedy strikes again
It started with another late-night phone call, another rush to the airport, where familiar faces in a familiar setting tried to make sense of nearly 300 more lives lost in the second disaster to strike Malaysia Airlines in the space of just a few months. For a company and a nation still struggling to come to terms with the unsolved disappearance of Flight MH370 on March 8, Thursday's apparent shooting down of another Boeing 777 over eastern Ukraine was a devastating blow. "For something like this to happen, just four months after MH370, just when we were beginning to get on with life, it is just very difficult to take," one airline executive told Reuters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, sobbing as he spoke. Read more
* Malaysia PM Najib Razak vows to discover truth behind #MH17 tragedy in Ukraine
Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak vowed on Friday that his government would leave no stone unturned to discover the truth behind what caused Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 to crash in Ukraine, even as Ukranian authorities reiterated that the plane had been shot down by Russian rebels. Speaking as it was being reported that the Black Box of the aircraft had been found and was being sent for forensic investigations, Prime Minister Razak said if the plane had indeed been shot down, Malaysia would insist that the perpetrators be swiftly brought to justice. "No stone will be left unturned," he told a media conference at Sama-Sama Hotel here. Read more
* READ: Why were commercial planes still flying over Ukraine?
* Updated figures by Malaysia Airline put the number of Dutch citizens on board MH17 at 154
* Digvijay Singh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan express shock over Malaysian plane #MH17 tragedy
Congress General Secretary and Rajya Sabha member Digvijay Singh today described as "shocking" the shooting down of a Malaysian plane over Eastern Ukraine. In a tweet, the senior leader said the incident was both "unimaginable and unpardonable." "Who ever has done it must be punished," Singh said and extended his condolences to the aggrieved families. Read more
Vladimir Putin seeks impartial probe after plane #MH17 downed
Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a phone call with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, demanded a "thorough and unbiased" investigation into the downing of a Malaysian airliner in eastern Ukraine, the Kremlin said on Friday. "The head of the Russian state underlined that the tragedy yet again highlighted the need for the swiftest peaceful solution to the acute crisis in Ukraine and noted that a thorough and unbiased investigation into all the circumstances of the air catastrophe was needed," it said. A majority of the 298 people killed on the plane on Thursday were Dutch citizens. Read more
* Pro-Russian rebel leader on social media claimed shooting Malaysian Aircraft #MH17
A pro-Russian rebel leader and expert of the Bosnian War, Igor Strelkov had tweeted that he had shot down the Malaysian aircraft MH17 mistaking it for a Ukrainian Air Force transport plane. Strelkov casually labeled the MH17 plane as a bird that fell near the mine, saving the residential area. The rebel also posted a statement that said that they had warned Ukrainian forces not to fly in their area. Read more
* No Indian on board the ill-fated Malaysian Airlines plane: Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju
* Second Malaysian plane's "black box" found in Ukraine
Rescue workers recovered a second flight recorder on Friday from the Malaysian airliner brought down in eastern Ukraine, a Reuters cameraman on the scene said. Pro-Russian separatists in the region said on Thursday they had found one of the "black box" recorders on Thursday when the Malaysian airliner came down, killing all 298 people on board. Read more
* Malaysian airlines #MH17 black box sent to Russia for investigation
The black box of the Malaysian airline MH17, that was shot down in the conflict area in Eastern Ukraine, has been sent to Moscow for investigation, reports the Daily Beast. The Malaysian plane had fallen from a height of 10,600 metres and all passengers on board, including the crew died in the tragedy. Read more
* Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to the families of the victims. Read more
Our thoughts & prayers are with the families of those who lost their lives on board Flight MH17: PM @narendramodi
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) July 18, 2014
* East Ukraine a no-fly zone after Malaysian plane #MH17 crash
Ukrainian authorities has declared the east of the country a no-fly zone after a Malaysian airliner carrying 295 people crashed in the volatile region, European flight safety body Eurocontrol has said. European and US airlines rerouted their flights as Kiev said the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down in a "terrorist" attack and a US official said intelligence analysts "strongly believe" it was downed by a surface-to-air missile. "Since the crash, the Ukrainian authorities have informed Eurocontrol of the closure of routes from the ground to unlimited (altitude) in Eastern Ukraine," a statement said yesterday. "All flight plans that are filed using these routes are now being rejected by Eurocontrol. The routes will remain closed until further notice," it added. Read more
* Kiev 'bears responsibility' for Malaysian plane #MH17 crash: Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Ukraine was responsible for the crash of a Malaysian airline carrying 298 people in the strife-torn east of the former Soviet state. "There is no doubt that the country on whose territory this terrible tragedy happened bears responsibility," Putin was quoted by Ria Novosti news agency as saying yesterday. "This tragedy would not have happened if there was peace in the country, if military operations had not resumed in the south-east of Ukraine," he added. The Russian leader then said he had ordered military officials to "provide all aid needed to shed light on this criminal act." Read more
* Malaysian PM Najib Razak demands swift justice if flight #MH17 was shot down
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak demanded swift justice for those responsible if a Malaysian airliner that came down in Ukraine was found to have been shot down. Najib, reading out a statement at a news conference on Friday, said Malaysia had not been able to verify what caused the Boeing 777-200 to crash while on a flight from Amsterdam to the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, but it had not made a distress call. Read more
* Dutch foreign minister says responders must have "unhindered" access to crash site
Emergency responders must be given "unhindered and safe" access to the site where a Malaysia Airlines jet carrying at least 154 Dutch citizens crashed in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, the Dutch foreign minister said. "This is a very black day for the Netherlands," said Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans, adding that there needed to be an independent investigation into the crash. Ukrainian officials had accused rebels of hampering access to the crash site.
* Downing of Malaysian plane "unspeakable crime" if proven - Australia's Tony Abbott
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said if the downing of a Malaysian airliner over eastern Ukraine was a criminal act, then "it is an unspeakable crime". The Australian government said in a statement it had grave concerns that a number of Australians might have been on the plane, which crashed on Thursday, killing all 295 people on board. The European head of Malaysia Airlines said at least 27 Australian were on the flight.
* US to help investigate what happened with crashed Malaysia plane, says Barack Obama
President Barack Obama said on Thursday the crash of a Malaysian jetliner on the border of Ukraine was a "terrible tragedy" and the United States would offer any assistance necessary to help determine what happened and why. Obama said officials were looking into whether US citizens were on board the plane. Obama made the comments at the beginning of remarks about infrastructure in Delaware.
* Russia asks Kiev for permission to help at plane crash site
Russia asked Kiev on Thursday for permission to help with rescue work in eastern Ukraine after a Malaysian passenger airliner was brought down there, the Emergencies Ministry said. "The Russian emergency services sent an official request to our Ukrainian colleagues to carry out joint work at the crash site of a Boeing (plane) on Ukrainian territory," Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov told Russia's RIA news agency.
* Defence expert have suggested that there is high probability that the Malaysian plane was brought down by surface to air missile, and not by a shoulder missile as some speculated. "Even to launch a surface to air missile you need professional competence. It requires a full setup," defense expert Uday Bhaskar explained to ANI.
* Narendra Modi's flight would have passed air zone of MH17 mishap within an hour of the attack
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flight could have crossed the same corridoor as where the MH17 flight was shot down. The Hindu reported, that Torez, the site of the crash is some 40 kms away from Russia border in Unkraine. After taking off from Frankfurt at 1122 gmt, Modi's fight would reach the air zone at around 0130 gmt. The Mh17 flight was shot down an hour earlier. The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur and had 298 people on board. Reports also say that it was a ground-to-air missile or surface-to-air missile that shot down the plane. This area has been a warzone between Russia and Ukrainian rebels for few weeks now. Read more
* Downing of Malaysia Airline plane #MH17 in Ukraine scatters bodies and debris for miles
A lone fireman stood hosing down a smouldering pile of wreckage and mangled bodies on Thursday after a Malaysian passenger airliner was brought down in fields in eastern Ukraine. To reach the wreckage, media crews, emergency vehicles, locals and rebels - fighting to unite the eastern territory with Russia - drove around body parts along a narrow pot-holed road beside the fields, where the dead were strewn over an area of several kilometres (miles). The debris from the plane, which came down near the village of Hrabove about 40 km (25 miles) from the border with Russia, was scattered across such a large area that one piece of metal fell on the town of Snezhnye, some 20 km away, residents said. Read more
* UN urges international probe into downed Malaysian plane #MH17
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for "a full and transparent international investigation" into what brought down a Malaysian civilian airliner over eastern Ukraine on Thursday, killing all. Read more
* Barack Obama, Petro Poroshenko stress evidence from #MH17 plane crash must stay in Ukraine
US President Barack Obama and Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko emphasized in a phone call on Thursday that all evidence from the downed Malaysian jetliner must remain in Ukraine for investigators to see. Read more
* Air India, Jet Airways to avoid airspace over war-torn eastern Ukraine
Indian carriers, Air India and Jet Airways, are likely to avoid the airspace of war-torn eastern Ukraine in view of reported shooting down of a Malaysian airliner in which all 295 people on board were killed today. Air India will abide by any international advisory "to avoid airspace over conflict zone like Ukraine", an Air India official said. Aviation sources said airlines have to take a call on there routing to America and European destinations. There are several routes to go to the US and europe and airlines have to take a call whether to abide by global aviation advisory on the such issues, they said. Read more
* Malaysia Airline confirms passengers on board:
* In an official statement the airline confirmed that it was now deploying a team to assist the family of the victims, "Our focus now is to work with the emergency responders and authorities and mobilise its full support to provide all possible care to the next-of-kin. Malaysia Airlines is deploying its “Go Team” to Amsterdam with a group of caregivers and volunteers to assist the family members of the passengers," it said.
The airline will provide regular updates on the situation.
Families of passengers and crew may contact +603 7884 1234 (Malaysia) or +31703487770(Netherlands).
For media queries, kindly contact +603 8777 5698/ +603 8787 1276.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin expresses condolences:
Condolences to Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Razak http://t.co/O7nsLE9EEe
— Vladimir Putin (@PutinRF_Eng) July 17, 2014
* There were at least 71 Dutch citizens aboard the crashed plane, Germany's RTL channel has reported. Previous unconfirmed reports suggested that there were also 23 passengers with US identification and 9 Brits on the flight. French authorities have confirmed that four of their citizens died in the crash.
* The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has cleared up the confusion about whether the space in which MH17 was open to civilian planes. "Based on the information currently available it is believed that the airspace that the aircraft was traversing was not subject to restrictions," said a statement on the IATA website.*
* US Vice President Joe Biden spoke to Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko, offered US assistance to help determine what happened in crash: White House
President Barack Obama pledges to “offer any assistance we can to help determine what happened and why to Malaysia Airlines
Pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine say they have found "black box" flight recorder of downed Malaysian airliner: Interfax
Barack Obama says US government working to determine whether Americans on board the downed jet.
Russia emergency service ask Kiev for permission to help with rescue work at Malayasian Airline crash site
Barack Obama to address Malaysian plane crash at beginning of remarks in Delaware, starting shortly: White House
At least four French nationals on board Malaysia Airlines flight that crashed: French Foreign Minister - Reuters
I'm shocked and saddened by the Malaysian air disaster. Officials from across Whitehall are meeting to establish the facts.
— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) July 17, 2014
US Secretary of State spokeswoman Jen Psaki says no details on reports of 23 Americans on board downed flight -
Number of dead in Malaysia Airlines crash more than 300, includes 23 US citizens: Interior Ministry adviser- Interfax (Reuters)
Moscow-Russian Emergency services ask Kiev for permission to help with rescue work at the crash site - RIA
Pics of passports reportedly from #MH17. Includes Dutch, German and Malaysian passengers. pic.twitter.com/EAUah9PqAc
— Jerome Taylor (@JeromeTaylor) July 17, 2014
Ukrainian President Poroshenko says bringing down of Malaysian flight MH17 was a "terrorist act" - Interfax, quoting his press service
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his "sincere condolences" to Malaysian Prime Minister Najob Razak, the Kremlin press service reports.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that the jetliner may have been shot down over his country's airspace. "We do not exclude that the plane was shot down and confirm that the Ukraine Armed Forces did not fire at any targets in the sky," Poroshenko said in a statement posted on the president's website. The plane could have been brought down by a ground-to-air missile, sources said.
"I am shocked by reports that an MH plane crashed," Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on his Twitter feed. "We are launching an immediate investigation," he said as he headed to the Kuala Lumpur airport.
I am shocked by reports that an MH plane crashed. We are launching an immediate investigation.
— Mohd Najib Tun Razak (@NajibRazak) July 17, 2014
Donetsk PM Borodai denies reports militia shot down Malaysian Airlines MH17.
Anton Gerashenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister, said on his Facebook page the plane was flying at an altitude of 10,000 metres (33,000 feet) when it was hit by a missile fired from a Buk launcher. A similar launcher was seen by Associated Press journalists near the eastern Ukrainian town of Snizhne earlier on Thursday. The Buk missile system can fire missiles up to an altitude of 22,000 metres (72,000 feet).
Flight MH17 was shot down by "terrorists," an advisor to Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs says.
White House says Obama directed senior US officials to remain in close touch with Ukrainian officials about downed plane Flight MH17
Russian President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation told US President Barack Obama that a Malaysian airplane crashed on Ukrainian territory, the Kremlin said on Thursday. The two leaders held a pre-planned call on the situation in Ukraine during which information became available from air traffic controllers about the crash
Ukrainian armed forces were not involved in a Malaysian passenger plane being brought down in eastern Ukraine, its presidential press service said on Thursday. Interfax quoted it as saying that President Petro Poroshenko did not exclude that the plane had been shot down.
"This is the third event in the last few days following An-26 and SU-25 planes being brought down. We do not exclude that this plane was also shot down and we stress that the armed forces of Ukraine did not carry out any action to destroy targets in the air," the press service said.
Flight #MH-17 #Torez #Donetsk #Ukraine by Nadezhda Chernetskaya pic.twitter.com/nrokR3svTU
— legionar (@MatevzNovak) July 17, 2014
Flight #MH-17 #Torez #Donetsk #Ukraine by Nadezhda Chernetskaya pic.twitter.com/adpUsbsBup
— legionar (@MatevzNovak) July 17, 2014
Flight #MH-17 #Torez #Donetsk #Ukraine by Nadezhda Chernetskaya pic.twitter.com/2o0SGVnjbE
— legionar (@MatevzNovak) July 17, 2014
Malaysia Airlines and the Malaysian Ministry of Transport have said on Thursday, that they had no information about any airliner that may have been crashed over Ukraine. The Malaysian airplane failed to enter Russian airspace when expected on Thursday and was found burning on the ground in eastern Ukraine, an aviation source told Reuters.
Malaysia's Star newspaper quoting sources said the plane was shot down while cruising at an altitude of 30,000 feet.
#BREAKING: Malaysian plane was brought down by a ground-to-air missile: Interior Ministry adviser, quoted by Interfax
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) July 17, 2014
It said the Boeing plane was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysia Airlines has lost contact of MH17 from Amsterdam. The last known position was over Ukrainian airspace. More details to follow.
— Malaysia Airlines (@MAS) July 17, 2014
ITAR-Tass news agency reported that the airliner flying at the altitude of over 10,000 metres was supposed to enter the Russian air space at 17:20 Moscow standard time (13:20 UTC). "However, it fell down in 60 kms from the border; the plane's emergency location beacon went off," the agency reported quoting sources.
The Boeing passenger liner came down close to town of Shaktarsk in the rebellion-wracked region of Donetsk after disappearing from the radar and teams from the emergency services were trying to reach the scene, an unnamed security source said. The Ukraine prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has ordered a probe into the crashing of the plane.
Dozens of bodies were scattered around the smouldering wreckage of a passenger jet that crashed in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, a Reuters reporter said. An emergency services rescue worker said at least 100 bodies had so far been found at the scene, near the village of Grabovo, and that debris from the wreckage was scattered across an area up to about 15 km (nine miles) in diameter.
Broken pieces of the wings were marked with blue and red paint - the same colours as the emblem of the Malaysian airline which lost track of a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was carrying almost 300 people.
MT @hdevreij: Airliners now taking evasive action to avoid e. #Ukraine airspace. Ex.: Flight TG921 Thai Airways pic.twitter.com/CttSAnHCh4 #MH17
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) July 17, 2014
MAP: Location of Malaysian Airlines #MH17 crash site; LATEST UPDATES http://t.co/4nYqODD8HX pic.twitter.com/STEjBbtvub
— RT (@RT_com) July 17, 2014
FIRST PHOTO: Eyewitness' alleged photo of debris of #MH17 Malaysian Airlines plane in #Ukraine http://t.co/cOfyUnXeky pic.twitter.com/TbIPiH0iCh
— RT (@RT_com) July 17, 2014
PHOTO: Eyewitness photo of #MH17 crash site as Malaysian plane falls in #Ukraine http://t.co/7wORuwKiHH pic.twitter.com/wwGPHP1tVs
— RT (@RT_com) July 17, 2014
The flight's path is given below.
The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 plane was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur and carrying 280 passengers and 15 crew members.
Two unconfirmed videos of the crash site have surfaced online.
Today's crash comes four months after the Beijing-bound Malaysia Airlines MH370 disappeared with 239 people including five Indians on board after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on March 8.
The plane has still not been found.
This is the news report by Russian TV giving out more details on the crash.
