MALAYSIA Kuala Lumpur remembers the victims of the civilian plane shot down in Ukraine eight years ago

The investigations point to the pro-Russian militias, but the judicial process has not yet ended. The aircraft was operating a connection between Malaysia and the Netherlands. None of the 238 passengers survived.

Kuala Lumpur () – The Dewan Rakiat, the lower house of the Malaysian parliament, today recalled the tragic end of civil flight MH17 operated by Malaysia Airlines and shot down by pro-Russian militias while flying over eastern Ukraine in 2014.

“All members of the Dewan Rakiat and I deeply regret these events and therefore we want to express our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the passengers and crew members,” said Speaker of the Assembly Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun. , before parliamentarians rose for an Islamic prayer and a minute’s silence.

On July 17, 2014, a Boeing 777 operating a regular connection between Amsterdam and the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile launched by a pro-Russian pro-independence militia unit. None of the 283 passengers, mostly Dutch citizens, nor the 15 crew members survived.

As a result of the preliminary investigation by the Netherlands, the Dutch-led International Joint Investigation Team concluded in 2016 that the aircraft had been hit by a Buk rocket used by the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces. , stationed in Kursk. The route, until then very busy, was not classified as risky.

In 2019, four individuals, three of them military, involved at different levels in the ranks of the pro-Russian separatists, were charged, and an international arrest warrant was issued against them.

The long judicial process is not over yet. The last session of the Dutch court took place on June 10 and the President of the Court, Judge Hendrik Steenhuis, announced that the next session will take place on September 22. It is expected that by that date the Court will be able to announce when the sentence will be delivered, probably between November 17 and December 15.