Summary
- The United Nations (UN) called for justice of the victims of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 ten years after the event.
- An independent investigation committee determined that the anti-aircraft missile system that shot down the Malaysia Airlines aircraft came from Russia.
- Four defendents were trialed in absentia for their involvement in the fatal accident, with three of them being found guilty.
Ten years after Russia-controlled separatists shot down a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER operating flight MH17, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General has renewed calls for justice and accountability for those involved in the shooting down of the commercial aircraft.
Ensuring responsibility
On July 16, the UN released a statement, citing António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the UN, called for all UN member states, which includes Russia, to fully cooperate and make sure that those responsible for shooting down the Malaysia Airlines aircraft would be held to account.
The UN Security Council adopted resolution 2166 on July 21, 2014, which expressed concerns that armed groups had impeded investigators from accessing the crash site and called for an independent international investigation and an immediate halt to military activity in the area.
Photo: Denis Kornilov | Shutterstock
At the time, the 15-member body also demanded that all responsible for the crash of the aircraft, which claimed the lives of 298 passengers and crew members onboard the 777-200ER, be held accountable, with all member states cooperating fully “to establish accountability.”
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Nearly ten years ago a Malaysian Airlines aircraft was shot down while flying over Ukraine.
Missile system from Russia
The UN statement emphasized that the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), led by Dutch nationals and joined by Australian, Malaysian, Belgian, and Ukrainian investigators, had determined that the Buk anti-aircraft missile system originated in Russia.
Photo: Alexander Gafarro | Shutterstock
The JIT presented its conclusions in May 2018. At the time, Fred Westerbeke, the then-Chief Public Prosecutor of the National Public Prosecution Service in the Netherlands, stated that the anti-aircraft missile system was brought from Russia and was fired from a field near Pervomaiskyi, Ukraine, which was then controlled by pro-Russian separatists.
“The questions that everyone wants answered from day one are: Why was flight MH17 shot down? And who are responsible for this horrendous act? I cannot give you the answer to these specific questions today.”
In the latest statement, the UN emphasized that Russia has still denied its involvement in the crash, saying that there was not enough evidence to pin the blame on the country, its army, or some of its citizens involved in the act.
Related
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The investigation has now been suspended with all leads exhausted.
Trialed in absentia
In November 2022, the District Court in The Hague, the Netherlands, concluded its trial into the tragic accident of MH17, ruling that three defendants were guilty, while the fourth one was acquitted.
However, as the trial was ongoing, Russia launched its illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, continuing to inflict devastation within the country. Thus, the quartet was trialed in absentia.
The tragedy happened on July 16, when the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER, registered as 9M-MRD, was operating flight MH17 between Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) and Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL).
As the aircraft was overflying an active conflict zone between Ukraine and pro-Russia separatists, the Buk anti-aircraft missile system, which was allegedly used by the Russian 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade, shot down the widebody, killing all 298 people onboard, including 283 passengers and 15 crew members.
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MH17: Three Men Found Guilty Of Shooting Down A Boeing 777
The three men were tried in absentia, and are likely to never face jail time.
