New results in MH17 investigation presented this afternoon

The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) will present new results in the ongoing investigation into those involved in the downing of flight MH17 on Wednesday. The team is investigating who crewed the missile installation that brought down the plane and who was responsible for delivering the missile system. A press conference is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.

Before the press conference, there will be a private meeting for the relatives of people who died in the plane crash. They will be the first to know the new details. The press conference will happen at Eurojust, the EU agency for judicial cooperation in criminal matters, in The Hague. The Netherlands, Ukraine, and Malaysia have worked together in the international investigation team since 2014.

In November last year, the court in The Hague sentenced rebel leader Igor Girkin, his right-hand man Sergei Dubinsky, and garrison commander Leonid Chartshenko to life in prison for their role in the downing of flight MH17. They were the first suspects identified by the JIT. The fourth suspect, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted. The court believes that the downing of the Malaysia Airlines passenger flight was a mistake by pro-Russian separatists. The assumption is that they did not intend to shoot down a passenger plane but mistook it for a military aircraft.

Shortly after the court ruling, the police and Public Prosecution Service announced that they would soon release more information about the follow-up investigation. “Who pressed the button? Who is even higher up the ladder? The investigation has not stopped,” Andy Kraag, head of the National Criminal Investigation Service, said at the time.

The European Court of Human Rights recently announced that it would examine Russia’s role in the downing of the flight. This follows complaints filed by the Netherlands and individual next-of-kin.

On 17 July 2014, the Malaysia Airlines flight from Schiphol to Kuala Lumpur was shot down over eastern Ukraine. All 298 people on board were killed, including 196 Dutch people.