10 years after MH17 disaster: City hall flags at half-staff on Wednesday

Wednesday will mark ten years since Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine about three hours after taking off from Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. The incident killed all 298 people on the Boeing 777, including 283 passengers and 15 crew members.

Some 196 Dutch nationals were on the flight to Kuala Lumpur on the afternoon of July 17, 2014. On Wednesday, the Dutch flag will fly at half-staff at the City Hall buildings in various municipalities. Amsterdam has not yet said whether the capital will be among them, but The Hague, Utrecht and Rotterdam have confirmed that they will fly the flag at half-staff.

Eindhoven indicated it will fly the flag at the lowered position if there is a national directive to do so. At the moment, that does not seem to be the case. Last month, Members of Parliament unanimously expressed the desire to see the flag flown at half-staff at government buildings on July 17 to commemorate the MH17 disaster.

The prime minister determines if a flag instruction is given, which can be issued at special moments. Prime Minister Dick Schoof has announced that the flag at his Ministry of General Affairs will be flown at half-staff on Wednesday, but that a national flag instruction will not be issued. It is therefore up to ministries, City Halls and organizations to decide for themselves whether to lower the flag.

Schoof will take part in the commemoration at National Monument MH17 in Vijfhuizen. He will deliver a speech, and afterwards he will speak with relatives and others involved. King Willem-Alexander will also be present at the commemoration.

In addition to the relatives of the victims, representatives from Malaysia, Australia, the United Kingdom and Belgium will also be present. Each country lost citizens in the downing of MH17, including the Malaysian crew. A representative from Ukraine will also attend the event.

The names of all 298 victims will be read out and there will be two-minute moment of silence.