MH17 black boxes with Malaysian delegation

The black boxes belonging to flight MH17 that crashed in Ukraine last week have been handed over to the Malaysian delegation by the pro-Russian rebels, according to journalists on the ground. The self-appointed Prime Minister of the Donetsk People's Republic (DNR), Aleksandr Borodai, reportedly called for the meeting himself. Borodai's colleague from Malaysia, Najib Razak, says that the boxes look to be in good condition. The black boxes contain information about the flight, and recordings from the cockpit. They are crucial in the investigations currently underway into the cause of the flight's tragic crash. On Monday, the UN Security Council determined that the Boeing was shot down. The council also demanded that the armed groups in the area give full cooperation in providing unrestricted access to the crash site. During the discussions between the delegations, the train carrying the dead bodies of the crash victims also came up. It appears that the train has, after some delay, left Torez. Razak says that the train is on its way to Charkov. Borodai reports that the train has already reached rebel stronghold Donetsk, where it will continue on to Charkov. In Charkov, a coordination center awaits the train, where the investigative team will be able to inspect the bodies. Dutch forensic experts set up this international team. From Charkov, the bodies will be flown back to The Netherlands, where their family can give their lost loved ones a suitable farewell. It is unclear how many bodies are on their way to The Netherlands.

#MH17 black boxes now in hands Malaysia delegation. pic.twitter.com/lFL5Wm4wWi

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) July 21, 2014

Malaysia waits for black boxes and bodies, by @adamminter http://t.co/tLB5ODeCXX pic.twitter.com/PeRhjLBVto

— Stacey Shick Samuels (@StaceyShick) July 18, 2014