MH17: Investigators name four suspects in downing of plane, three Russian nationals, one Ukrainian
The Dutch-led group of international investigators who formed to examine the 2014 MH17 downing have named four suspects. Three are Russian nationals who they suspect reside in Russia, the other is a Ukrainian national who they suspect lives in eastern Ukraine. The Russian nationals have been named as Igor Vsevolodovich, Sergey Nikolayevich, Oleg Pulatov. The Ukrainian national has been named as Leonid Kharchenko. Each of the named are suspected to have "played a significant role in the killing of 298 civillians" said the prosecutors. All of these were in eastern Ukraine on the night of the attack, said the spokesman for the investigators, who are from The Netherlands, where most of the victims of the incident were from. The Netherlands have further said that Russia has not cooperated with their investigation procedures, and do not expect them to hand over any of their charged. Moscow say they do not trust the international investigation. "Russia was unable to take part in the investigation despite expressing an interest right from the start and trying to join it", said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday. While the Netherlands and Australia have long held Russia responsible for the shooting, Putin has said that while the incident was a "terrible tragedy" Moscow was not to blame. Prosecutors said on Wednesday that "we now have the proof that the Russian federation is involved in some way in the crime...I'm sure they know what happened...They know this and they didn't give us the information." What was MH17? The term MH17 refers to the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot down over the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine in July 2014. All 298 people on board were killed. 196 of those killed were Dutch nationals. The territory over which the aircraft was attacked was held by pro-Russian separatists in an ongoing conflict between Ukranian forces and the Russian-backed separatist groups. In 2016, it was revealed by an investigation team that the plane was shot by a Russian made Cold War rocket launcher. The missile, prosecutors confirmed today, was returned to the Russian organisation after the attack. The investigation The investigation team was formed by Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine following the shooting in 2014. The process was carried out by a team of experts who helped the international group reach their conclusion. Who these experts are and what evidence led them to accuse the four suspects however has not yet been released. Prosecution will be carried out 9 march 2020 under Dutch law. The investigation team expressly appealed to the suspects to make themselves present for criminal trial however reminded the public that the trial will take place even if the suspects are absent. "I don't think the odds are on our side" that suspects will attend, said the prosecution team. They believe however that the process of prosecution will nonetheless be a relief for the families of victims. For us and everyone who has been involved "today is a day that can never be forgotten" said the prosecutors on Wednesday. The group looked back to their promise following the shooting to do their utmost to ensure justice was served, and to hold those responsible accountable for their actions. The investigation continues The group confirmed that although four suspects were identified today, the investigation is not over. Prosecutors suspect that a further four people operated the buk missile system which shot down MH17. As well as this the investigative team will target the chain of people responsible for the attack. "Many people played a part" in the shooting down of MH17, said the prosecutors. In order to gain "maximum clarity about the entire chain of responsible parties" the call for witnesses will continue. New witnesses are still coming forward with insights in the case today.
