Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Saturday, July 19, 07:30 PM GMT +0800 Media Statement 7 : MH17 Incident

Malaysia Airlines is appealing to the family members or friends of those onboard MH17 to contact the airline. Enclosed is the MH17 passenger manifest for reference.

In the past 45 hours, the airline together with various foreign embassies have made every effort to establish contact with the next-of-kin but is still unable to identify many more family members.

They are advised to contact Malaysia Airlines? Family Support Centre at +603 7884 1234 (in Malaysia).

Alternatively the family or friends may call the numbers below in their respective countries:

Netherlands (Malaysia Airlines Amsterdam office) +31 20 521 62 62
Australia (Malaysia Airlines Sydney office) +61 2 9364 3526
Indonesia (Malaysia Airlines Jakarta office) +62 2 1522 9705
New Zealand (Malaysia Airlines Auckland office) +64 9 306 3930
United Kingdom (Malaysia Airlines London office) +44 20 7341 2060
Germany (Malaysia Airlines Frankfurt office) +49 69 1387 1980
Philippines (Malaysia Airlines Manila office) + 63 2 889 1863
As of 19 July 2014, 5:00pm, the table below shows the latest number of passengers and their nationalities:-

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>
Nationality


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>Total


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Netherlands


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>193 (including 1 dual Netherlands/USA citizen)


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Malaysia


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>43 (including 15 crew & 2 infants)


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Australia


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>27


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Indonesia


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>12 (including 1 infant)


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>United Kingdom


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>10 (including 1 dual UK/S. Africa citizen)


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Germany


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>4


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Belgium


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>4


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Philippines


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>3


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Canada


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>1


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>New Zealand


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>1


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4>


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=173 colSpan=2>Total


</TD><TD vAlign=top width=194 colSpan=2>298


</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=bottom width=176 colSpan=2></TD><TD vAlign=bottom width=192 colSpan=2></TD><TD width=3>


</TD></TR><TR><TD width=4></TD><TD width=172></TD><TD width=1></TD><TD width=191></TD><TD width=3></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines deployed a ferry flight last night mobilizing 212 personnel from various government and media bodies and its staff to Kiev and Amsterdam in a special mission for MH17. A total of 85 Malaysia Airlines? ?Go Team? members have been deployed, of which five members will join Malaysia?s Special Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Smart) in the search-and-recovery mission at the crash site in the Donetsk region, while 80 other members comprising care givers and the management team will be stationed in Amsterdam to assist the family members of the passengers.

MH5002 departed Kuala Lumpur at 9.30pm on 18 July 2014 and arrived in Kiev at 2.58am (local time) on 19 July 2014 with a two hour transit. The aircraft then continued its journey to Amsterdam at 4.50am (local time) on 19 July 2014 and arrived in Schipol Amsterdam Airport at 5.30am the same day.

The mission is also joined by Malaysia?s Ministry of Transport, the National Security Council, Special Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Smart), Malaysia?s Department of Information, the Royal Malaysian Police, Malaysian Special Air Service, the Royal Malaysian Air Force, Malaysian Armed Forces, Department of Civil Aviation, Chemistry Department, Department of Islamic Advancement of Malaysia and the Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team as well as participating media.

Finally, Malaysia Airlines requests the cooperation of members of the media to respect the privacy of the grieving families. The airline?s top priority remains to provide care and assistance to the families of the passengers and crew and any information with regards to their movement will not be made public.
-Ends-

------------------------------------------------------

Saturday, July 19, 07:20 PM GMT +0800 MH17 Press Briefing By Liow Tiong Lai, Minister of Transport

INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT

Today Malaysia Airlines have released the final list of nationalities on board flight MH17. Each of the numbers represents a life lost, and a family in anguish. After this press conference, Malaysia Airlines will release the full passenger manifest.

Malaysia mourns the loss of all 298 passengers and crew. We feel for their families. And we promise to do all we can to ensure that the investigation is completed, and that justice is done.

ON THE INVESTIGATION:

Malaysia is deeply concerned that the crash site has not been properly secured. The integrity of the site has been compromised, and there are indications that vital evidence has not been preserved in place.

Interfering with the scene of the crash risks undermining the investigation itself. Any actions that prevent us from learning the truth about what happened to MH17 cannot be tolerated. Failure to stop such interference would be a betrayal of the lives that were lost.

Malaysia calls for all parties to protect the integrity of the crash site, and to allow the investigation to proceed. We urge all those involved to respect the families, and the nations who have lost their sons and daughters in this attack.

Yes, MH17 has become a geopolitical issue. But we must not forget that it is a human tragedy. Days after the plane went down, the remains of 298 people lie uncovered.

Citizens of eleven nations ? none of whom are involved in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine ?cannot be laid to rest. Their lives were taken by violence; now violence stops them being accorded their final respect. This cannot continue.

ON DEPLOYMENT:

Earlier today, Malaysia?s special team arrived in Kiev. We ask for continued support from the Ukrainian government, and the other parties involved, as the team seeks to assist the Ukrainian authorities in recovering and identifying the remains of the passengers and crew, and with the wider investigation.

The world has a moral obligation to ensure that the remains of all victims are recovered and treated with respect. We will play our part in fulfilling this obligation. That is why, later today, I will join the Malaysian team in Kiev, where I will work with my counterpart in the Ukraine government, to support efforts to retrieve the remains, and to assist with the investigation.

I will be joined by the Director General of the Department of Civil Aviation, the Malaysian investigator in charge, and the Chairman of Malaysia Airlines. The CEO of Malaysia Airlines is already in Kiev.

ON THE FLIGHT PATH:

On the matter of MH17?s flight path, I would like to refer to recent reported comments by officials from Eurocontrol, the body which approves European flight paths under ICAO rules.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the officials stated that some 400 commercial flights, including 150 international flights crossed eastern Ukraine daily before the crash. Officials from Eurocontrol also stated that in the two days before the incident, 75 different airlines flew the same route as MH17.

MH17?s flight path was a busy major airway, like a highway in the sky. It followed a route which was set out by the international aviation authorities, approved by Eurocontrol, and used by hundreds of other aircraft. It flew at an altitude set, and deemed safe, by the local air traffic control. And it never strayed into restricted airspace.

The flight and its operators followed the rules. But on the ground, the rules of war were broken. In an unacceptable act of aggression, it appears that MH17 was shot down; its passengers and crew killed by a missile.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

This outrage cannot go unpunished. Once again, Malaysia condemns this brutal act of aggression, and calls for those responsible to be found, and to face the full force of justice without delay.
-ends-

http://www.malaysiaairlines.com/my/en/site/mh17.html

 

[Emily]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/10975524/Crashed-MH17-flight-was-300-miles-off-typical-course.html

Crashed MH17 flight 'was 300 miles off typical course'
MH17 flight feared to have been shot down over Ukraine was taking a significantly different route to the usual course for flights from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, according to aviation expert
... "And the flight today tracked very, very much further north into the Ukraine than the other previous flights did ... there were MH17 versions that were 300 miles south of where this one was."

Records of recent MH17 flights on the FlightAware appear to bear out Mr Mark's claim, with earlier flights significantly further south than the flight that crashed....

You didn't need to be an aviation expert to observe that. See:
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showpost.php?p=539773&postcount=13

The article says pilots were warned to avoid the area, but relevant authorities did not do so.

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showpost.php?p=539864&postcount=34


http://www.businessinsider.com/a-fateful-thunderstorm-may-have-doomed-flight-mh17-2014-7

A Fateful Thunderstorm May Have Doomed Flight MH17
Benjamin Zhang
Jul. 18, 2014, 5:40 PM
...
According to CNN, there was a significant storm situated right over MH17's planned path through southern Ukraine. In response, the pilots may have requested a route through the northeast to provide a safer and smoother ride for the passengers. Unfortunately, the course change took them right over the disputed region in the east where Ukrainian forces have been battling pro-Russian separtists.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/a-fa...-have-doomed-flight-mh17-2014-7#ixzz37w6GvdAr

If that was the case, did Ukrainian air traffic controllers have to direct MH17 directly over a conflict zone where it was known that both sides had radar guided anti-aircraft missiles that could easily attain a target at 32,000 ft?

 

[Emily]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/couple-who-lost-son-in-mh370-tragedy-lose-relative-in-mh17-disaster-20140719-zuqji.html

Couple who lost son in MH370 tragedy lose relative in MH17 disaster

Date July 19, 2014 - 12:13PM
Anne-Louise Brown

Their family has been struck by tragedy twice, but George and Irene Burrows are grateful they at least know the fate of their step-granddaughter, who perished when MH17 was shot down.

The Burrows lost their son Rodney and his wife Mary on MH370 when it disappeared in March.

Now, with the downing of MH17, they have lost their step-granddaugher Maree Rizk and her husband Albert, from Sunbury, 40 kilometres north-west of Melbourne.

Speaking from his home in Biloela in central Queensland on Saturday Mr Burrows told Brisbane Times his family was in shock.

However, he maintained a sense of humour in the wake of the tragedy, saying ?everybody will be walking from now on?...

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/que...17-disaster-20140719-zuqji.html#ixzz37wF9CvFo

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/malaysia-airlines-confirms-refunds-passengers-panicked-by-downing-mh17-1457334

Malaysia Airlines Confirms Refunds to Passengers Panicked by Downing of MH17
JERIN-MATHEW
By Jerin Mathew
July 19, 2014 10:47 BST

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Not confirmed by other sources

| 19-07-14 |

'Netherlands and U.S. prepare for invasion'

At about twenty kilometers from the Polish capital Warsaw Dutch, but most American troops prepare according to our sources for an invasion in the area where the wreckage of Thursday flight MH17 Malaysia Airlines came down.

Thereby may possibly also Dutch F-16s deployed, these normally perform patrol flights over the Baltic states.

'Nederland en VS bereiden invasie voor'

| 19-07-14 |

Mark Rutte mag voor de buitenwacht Vladimir Poetin nog een diplomatieke handreiking hebben gedaan, achter de schermen wordt samen met de Verenigde Staten een plan B gesmeed. Dat melden bronnen van Spitsnieuws.nl in Polen, die dichtbij de Amerikaanse ambassade staan.

Op zo’n twintig kilometer van de Poolse hoofdstad Warschau bereiden Nederlandse, maar vooral Amerikaanse, militairen zich volgens onze bronnen voor op een invasie in het gebied waar donderdag de brokstukken van vlucht MH17 van Malaysia Airlines neerkwamen. Daarbij kunnen eventueel ook Nederlandse F16’s worden ingezet, deze voeren normaal gesproken patrouillevluchten boven de Baltische staten uit. Zowel de Nederlandse als de Amerikaanse autoriteiten hebben zich tot nu toe nog niet geuit over een plan B.

Read more: Spits

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Government of Netherlands
MH17 incident

Rutte: ?Putin must take responsibility'

News item | 19-07-2014
At 17:55 on Saturday afternoon Prime Minister Mark Rutte issued a new statement on the air disaster in Ukraine involving flight MH17. ?I want to see results in the form of unhindered access and a speedy recovery of the victims? remains. This is now priority number one. Putin must take responsibility vis-?-vis the rebels and show the Netherlands and the world that he is doing what is expected of him?, Mr Rutte said.

Prim Minister Mark Rutte:

Ladies and gentlemen,

Malaysia Airlines just released the official passenger manifest of flight MH17. The victims now have names and faces, making the images of the crash site even more horrifying. Everyone can see the wreckage of the aircraft and the remains of the passengers and their personal belongings lying scattered around the scene.

Swift recovery of the victims? remains is now an absolute necessity and our highest priority. Anyone who fails to cooperate fully and immediately is leaving themselves open to very serious suspicions.

I am shocked by the images of completely disrespectful behaviour at this tragic place. In defiance of all the rules of proper investigation, people have evidently been picking through the personal and recognisable belongings of the victims. This is appalling.

And it is undermining efforts to investigate and reconstruct what happened. Yesterday I said that our priority was to uncover all the facts. It is now of the utmost urgency that the remains of the Dutch victims be repatriated swiftly. As Minister Timmermans of Foreign Affairs just reported, following close consultations with the Ukrainian authorities, the first Dutch forensics experts are on their way to the crash site. It is vital for them to be able to do their jobs, unimpeded and with full access.

President Putin pledged his full cooperation regarding unhindered access to the crash site when we spoke on the phone yesterday. Following today?s developments and the pictures we saw this morning, I sent a message in writing to the president urging him to exercise his influence on the militias.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement today on this subject. I arrived at the press conference later than planned because I just had an extremely intensive telephone conversation with the Russian president. I told him that the window of opportunity to show the world that he intends to help is closing rapidly. He must take responsibility vis-?-vis the rebels and show the Netherlands and the world that he is doing what is expected of him. Yes, by exercising his influence.

This is also the opinion of Prime Minister Abbott of Australia, another country that has been hit hard by this tragedy. I spoke to him earlier today, and with my European colleagues Cameron and Merkel, who share the same view. I want to see results in the form of unhindered access and speedy recovery of the victims? remains. This is now priority number one.

Thank you.

http://www.government.nl/issues/mh1.../19/rutte-putin-must-take-responsibility.html

 

[Emily]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

http://theconversation.com/mh17-was-a-victim-of-the-new-cold-wars-first-proxy-conflict-29428

18 July 2014, 6.17pm BST
MH17 was a victim of the new cold war?s first proxy conflict
Author Adam Swain
Associate Professor, School of Geography at University of Nottingham

Disclosure Statement
Adam Swain does not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has no relevant affiliations.

It remains to be seen precisely how and why the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crashed over the territory of the self-proclaimed ?Donetsk People?s Republic? in eastern Ukraine on Thursday. But whatever the outcome, almost 300 lives have been lost as part of a piece of political theatre which now looks more like a crushing tragedy....

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/7/18/ukraine-village-malaysianplane.html

?We don?t want this war?: Amid plane wreckage, villagers seek answers

Around site of downed aircraft in rural area controlled by pro-Russian separatists, residents witness scenes of horror
July 18, 2014 2:00PM ET
by Sabra Ayres
ROZSYPNE, Ukraine ? Larissa was working in the garden behind her house in this small, rural village when the bodies started falling from the sky and onto her rows of vegetables.

The first one tumbled and landed near the corn. Two more bounced off her neighbor?s roof and landed in the driveway.

?It was as if someone was pouring them onto us from a bucket in the sky,? she said. ?My first thought was that we were being bombed by the Ukrainians, but then I realized that they were bodies.?

...

?This is a war between America and Moscow, and we are just hostages,? said Sergei, a miner who had been bused to the wreckage site with the rest of his shift to help with the cleanup. ?We just want federalization and to live peacefully, but no one is listening to us. This plane crash is just what America needs to start a war with Russia.?

A few miles away, where huge chunks of the plane side had fallen in the middle of a large wheat field, Vladimir Kopoyenko, 50, was inspecting them with two of his neighbors from the village of Petropalovka. He wasn?t buying Kiev?s claims that rebels shot down the plane with a missile system.

?I was sitting in the grass here yesterday, and I heard two explosions ? one long one and then one short one,? he said. The first explosion was from a Ukrainian fighter jet that was following the Malaysia Airlines plane and shooting at it, probably at Kiev?s orders, he speculated...

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Aparently the agreement is not respected.

Update in Dutch: http://nos.nl/artikel/677102-alle-lichamen-weg-van-rampplek.html

Jul 20, 4:49 AM EDT

UKRAINE: REBELS HAVE TAKEN ALL PLANE CRASH BODIES

BY YURAS KARMANAU

HRABOVE, Ukraine (AP) -- Separatist rebels have taken all the 196 bodies that workers recovered from the Malaysian Airlines crash site away to an unknown location, Ukraine's emergency services said Sunday.

Associated Press journalists saw the pro-Russia rebels putting bagged bodies onto trucks at the crash site Saturday in rebel-held eastern Ukraine and driving them away.

More: Associated Press

Dutch Mediareport: "Agreement Regarding Airdisaster"

July 20, 2014

The Ukrain Vice President Vladimir Groisman said there is an agreement reagarding recovery of the bodies. Ukraïnians will recover and transport them, OSCE will monitor.

According to Russian media 196 bodies have been recovered.

In Dutch: http://nos.nl/artikel/677056-akkoord-over-rampplek.html

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Local volunteers (miners) arrive at crash site, they will look for the remaining bodies?

NOS.nl

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Malaysia Airlines Ukraine Crash: Rebels Put Bodies in Rail Cars
Nolan Feeney@NolanFeeney
9:54 AM ET
...

The bodies recovered from the downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 will stay in refrigerated train cars in the insurgent-occupied town of Torez until United Nations aviation officials arrive, a top Ukrainian rebel leader said Sunday. The comments from Alexander Borodai, the self-appointed Prime Minister of a pro-Russian ?People?s Republic? in eastern Ukraine, come after other European officials said rebels had rounded up victims? bodies and put them on rail cars bound for an unknown destination.

The rebels also said Sunday they will turn over the black boxes from the Boeing 777 to officials from the International Civil Aviation Organization, a UN body that oversees global aerospace issues. The aircraft?s black boxes were earlier rumored to have been sent to Moscow for examination.
...
http://time.com/#3009139/malaysia-airlines-ukraine-crash-black-boxes/

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Translation Google

Vladimir Groisman: Find every dead body in plane crash - the common task

20.07.2014 | 18:56
Press Service of the Ministry of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Utilities
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"Today we were able to load the body 192 and 8 pieces of dead bodies of innocent passenger aircraft Boeing 777 "Malaysian Airlines" in a special train. train is in Torez , sealed. This work we have completed in the morning, but by this time the train is not sent as terrorists blocking his exit. We are in constant dialogue with them about the possibility of removal of dead bodies "- said Vladimir Groisman , Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, Chairman of the State Commission to Investigate the cause of the crash Boeing 777 "Malaysian Airlines".<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>


"In addition, in the last hours has been found 27 bodies and 20 pieces of dead bodies. These bodies are in town events, they have a special refrigerator, and before the crash separate moving train, which will be loaded with these and other body that is found in the city of the crash, as search operation continues. I believe that finding the body of every dead person is our common goal, "- he added.<o></o>

"Today there are 200 search operations employees of the State Service of Ukraine of Emergencies and about 800 volunteers. However, they do their work under the constant supervision of armed militants, "- said Mr. Groisman . "As far as technical specialists and experts from different countries who are willing to join the investigation of the case on the town disaster, the most important question, which is at the moment - is to ensure their safety. We still unfortunately can not guarantee it, and management of, despite numerous requests, does not assume any liability or warranties, so the presence of experts in the city of the crash is their personal decision and the decision of their countries. For our part, we are ready at any moment to give the plane and take them to the nearest safe place, "- said Mr. Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine.<o></o>

According to him, the issue of black boxes from downed aircraft remains open, now the location of the State Commission to investigate the causes of the crash Boeing 777 "Malaysian Airlines" is unknown, but there is speculation that they are in the hands of terrorists.<o></o>

Vladimir Groisman said that as of today the official information on arrival in Ukraine of families perished there. The coordination of this process will provide the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine in cooperation with the relevant embassies.<o></o>

Mr. Groisman and other members of the Government Commission today held another meeting with the broad foreign experts of all countries who have come to Ukraine, including representatives of the Netherlands and Malaysia. The meeting was attended by representatives and other countries interested in conducting an investigation.<o></o>
"We value an objective professional independent investigation of the terrorist attack - said Mr. Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine. - The commission and the situation is under the constant supervision of the President of Ukraine and Prime Minister of Ukraine. We work closely with other ministries and agencies, as well as the embassies of countries whose citizens died in this terrible tragedy. "<o></o>
<o></o>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>http://www.kmu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=247469911&cat_id=244276429

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

MH17 Bodies Were Removed by Rebels Being 'Humane,' Borodai Says

By Keir Simmons and Albina Kovalyova

DONETSK, Ukraine - Pro-Russia rebels removed some of the bodies of passengers aboard the downed Malaysia Airlines jet from the crash site to be "humane," the separatists' leader told NBC News.

Alexander Borodai, prime minister of the self-declared People's Republic of Donetsk, said that passengers had been "lying out in the heat." However, his forces kept international monitors away from wreckage for a fourth day on Sunday.

The rebels also forced emergency workers at gunpoint to hand over 196 bodies recovered from the crash site and then had them loaded onto refrigerated train cars, Ukrainian officials and monitors told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Alexander Pilyushny, an emergency worker combing the crash site for body parts, said the he and other workers had no choice but to hand the bodies over to the rebels. "They are armed and we are not," Pilyushny said. "The militiamen came, put the bodies onto the trucks and took them away." It was not clear where the train could go.
...
Borodai, who is among the rebel leaders who had travel bans and asset freezes imposed by the European Union earlier this month, added that the militants who control access to the scene were "ready to hand over the bodies of the victims to Russia, since it is no more than 10 kilometers [six miles] to the border with Russia, and ... because we believe Russia and believe the Russian authorities."
...
http://www.nbcnews.com/#/storyline/...oved-rebels-being-humane-borodai-says-n160451

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

20 July 2014 Last updated at 13:13 ET

MH17 air crash: Recovered bodies put on train

The remains of up to 196 people from the MH17 crash in Ukraine have been loaded on to refrigerated rail wagons, to be taken to an unknown destination.
...
The indiscipline and chaos of the last two days have been replaced by the robust presence of former riot policemen who now form a cordon around the central area of the crash site.

There is still no sign of the fully fledged independent investigation which is being demanded by the international community.
...
Heavy machinery could be seen moving plane debris around at the crash site, AP news agency reported.
...
The freight train with its five sealed wagons has been standing at Torez railway station, 15km (nine miles) from the crash site.
...
The OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) mission in the region said in a tweet it had been told that 196 bodies were on the rail wagons in Torez.

An OSCE team was allowed to see three of the wagons and observed "tagged body bags", without being able to verify the figures. It's not clear where the train will take the bodies.
...
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28389991

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https://twitter.com/OSCE/with_replies

Ukraine Rebels Take Control of Crash Victims? Remains

VOA News
July 20, 2014 6:05 AM
...
International monitors said armed rebels limited their access to the site and Ukrainian officials pointed to separatists taking the bodies away from their workers by force.
...
Earlier, Bociurkiw and his 21-member team had been allowed to see several refrigerated railroad cars parked at a rural train station. He reported that he saw many body bags in the rail cars, but his team could not make its own count.

?Because of the conditions of the train, you need professional protective equipment to go in there. The stench was absolutely overwhelming. I do not want to be too gruesome, but it is a very, very, very difficult scene to watch.?

The OSCE officials are not disaster investigators. They are in rebel-held eastern Ukraine on a human rights mission. But they are the only independent observers in the region, and he said they are trying to document what they can about the disaster.

Donetsk rebel leader Alexander Borodai said the bodies recovered from the crash site would remain in refrigerated train cars in the rebel-held town of Torez, 15 kilometers from the site, until the arrival of an international aviation delegation.

??The bodies will go nowhere until experts arrive,?? Borodai said, speaking in the rebel-held city of Donetsk.

Borodai also said Sunday the insurgents are holding the flight data recorders with key information from the Malaysia Airlines passenger jet.

He said the so-called black boxes will be handed over to the International Civil Aviation Organization.
...
http://www.voanews.com/content/bodies-recovered-from-malaysia-crash-site/1961311.html

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(English) Michael Bociurkiw. UCMC, 20th of July 2014
<IFRAME height=360 src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ESzmymN5JCc?rel=0" frameBorder=0 width=640 allowfullscreen></IFRAME>
Published on Jul 20, 2014
(English) Michael Bociurkiw. UCMC, 20th of July 2014

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESzmymN5JCc

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Government of Netherlands
MH17 incident

Rutte: 'Repatriation of victims? remains is top priority?

News item | 20-07-2014

At 18:55 this evening Prime Minister Mark Rutte outlined the latest developments concerning the air disaster in Ukraine. 'Yesterday and today Frans Timmermans and I spoke to many of the players involved in repatriating the victims' remains,' said Mr Rutte. 'It was agreed that the Netherlands would coordinate the international effort to identify the victims.'

Prime Minister Mark Rutte:

Thank you and good evening. I would like to outline the latest developments. People all over the Netherlands have today been commemorating the terrible disaster that took place last Thursday. Tens of thousands of people have signed condolence books at local government offices or have expressed their condolences on the internet. Local communities are supporting the next of kin; sports clubs, churches, schools ? everyone is involved. Amidst all the grief and sorrow, it is heart-warming to see the whole nation pulling together.

Tomorrow there will be a closed information meeting for the next of kin, which will be attended by the King and Queen, myself, and several ministers and state secretaries, together with family detectives and people from Victim Support Netherlands.

Yesterday and today, Frans Timmermans and I spoke to many of the players involved in repatriating the victims' remains. It was agreed that the Netherlands would coordinate the international effort to identify the victims. Dutchman Gert Wibbelink will head the team. This evening, a military aircraft will leave Eindhoven airbase for Kharkiv. It will carry the people and equipment necessary to set up a coordination centre in Kharkiv.

There have been many reports today about a train, located near the crash site, containing a large number of bodies. All efforts are now geared to moving this train to the area controlled by the Ukraine government. Frans Timmermans telephoned Secretary of State John Kerry today to discuss this. The OSCE is currently negotiating with the separatists.

According to the latest information, the OSCE monitoring mission was able to carry out its work reasonably unhindered today. The OSCE plans to send the identification mission, including the ?embedded? Dutch experts, to the crash site early tomorrow morning.

Today I again had several conversations with my counterparts, including Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister David Cameron, and this evening I will speak to President Putin again. All these talks are aimed at achieving our number one priority: putting pressure on all parties concerned in order to recover the victims? remains.

Frans Timmermans is currently on his way to New York for consultations with the United Nations and members of the Security Council. The aim is to further expand the international coalition calling for the speedy recovery of the victims' remains and to ensure that no stone is left unturned in our efforts to get to the bottom of the terrible events involving flight MH17.

Tomorrow morning Minister of Security and Justice Ivo Opstelten, Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk and myself will hold a briefing in the House of Representatives on the aftermath of the air disaster and the government?s response in recent days.

That ends the outline of recent events concerning the terrible air disaster.

http://www.government.nl/news/2014/07/20/rutte-repatriation-of-victims-remains-is-top-priority.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Translation Google

Ukraine Government

In Torez came second train of wagons for transporting refrigerated dead - The state commission to investigate the accident

20.07.2014 | 22:35

Press Service of the Ministry of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Utilities

The second train of four wagons refrigerated for trasportuvannya dead bodies passenger airliner Boeing 777 " Malaysian Airlines "arrived July 20, 2014 in Torez at 16.25, according to the State Commission to investigate the crash.

By the refrigerator is moved the bodies that were found at the scene specialists of the State Emergency Services for the past two days, and the rest of the bodies that will be collected during subsequent search operations.

Meanwhile, the first train of wagons sealed refrigerated, located at the train station Torez , and which on the night of 20 to 21 July downloaded 192 killed and 8 pieces of bodies, still can not budge the tragedy as terrorists blocking his exit .

The State Commission continuously through the OSCE, which are at the crash site of the plane, in dialogue with the militants on the possibility of removal of dead bodies.

Overall n idrozdilamy DSNS Ukraine as of 21 hours. 30 minutes . 20 July 2014 showing the body 251 dead and 86 fragments of bodies .

Currently, the State Commission announces full readiness to provide prompt surveys bodies and analyzing the DNA of dead for 3 days.

In turn, Ukrainian doctors who are members of the State Commission, through Interpol have access to a database of DNA samples of relatives of all those killed passenger aircraft Boeing 777.

Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Vladimir Groisman , head of the State Commission of Inquiry, commissioned several ministries to work out the operational mechanism of issuing documents to relatives of those killed in a plane crash after all the procedures for identifying bodies.

Since the beginning of the realization of search operations as at 21 mph. 30 minutes . 20 July professionals DSNS examined about 109 square meters. city ​​of Kiev attracted 810 people , in fact those of DSNS Ukraine - 355 employees and 35 units of vehicles .

http://www.kmu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=247470035&cat_id=244276429

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Monday, July 21, 06:19 PM GMT +0800 Media Statement 9 : MH17 Incident

Malaysia Airlines' primary focus is to care for the family members affected by MH17. The airline will be supporting the families during these trying times and will be providing them hotel accommodation, meals, and transport assistance. At the same time, the airline has assigned caregivers (who are trained Malaysia Airlines? staff) for each family member to provide emotional support and basic needs. To date, 79 caregivers and other support staff are in Amsterdam, whilst 43 are based in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysia Airlines is very grateful to be working alongside KLM, who have been assisting it in supporting the family members from the outset.

As goodwill, to ease the immediate families of the passengers with their economic needs, the airline is also offering a financial assistance of USD5,000 to the families of each passenger. Funds have already been made available for this purpose. Citibank has supported Malaysia Airlines with the logistical arrangements for the fund transfer. This financial assistance will not be offset against the final compensation nor affect the families? legal rights to claim.

Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines will be organising a multi-faith prayer session for both staff and the public at large. Further details will be advised at a later date.

The airline requests the cooperation from members of the media to respect the privacy of the grieving families. Malaysia Airlines? top priority remains to provide care and assistance to the families of the passengers and crew and any information with regard to their personal circumstances will not be made public.
-end-

http://www.malaysiaairlines.com/my/en/site/mh17.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Ukraine Separatists Agree to Release Bodies and Black Boxes

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN, SABRINA TAVERNISE and KEITH BRADSHER JULY 21, 2014

KIEV, Ukraine ? After days of obstruction, Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine reached an agreement with Malaysia on Monday to surrender the flight recorder boxes of the Malaysia Airlines jetliner downed by a surface-to-air missile last week, and to allow the bodies of the victims to be evacuated by train.

The agreement, announced by the Malaysian prime minister, Najib Razak, in a live television broadcast, appeared to represent a significant movement to end the standoff after the crash of Flight 17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which killed 298 people. The bodies lay for days in a wheat field in eastern Ukraine, an area controlled by the separatists.
...
Mr. Najib, speaking from Kuala Lumpur, said the agreement with Alexander Borodai, a commander of the separatist forces in the city of Donetsk, Ukraine, called for the bodies to be taken by train to Kharkiv, a city held by the Ukrainian government. Six Malaysian representatives were to oversee the transfer of the bodies in Kharkiv to the custody of the Netherlands.

The so-called black boxes were to be handed over in Donetsk as well.
...
At a news briefing in Kiev late Monday afternoon, Deputy Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, who is leading the Ukrainian government?s response to the jetliner downing, said a train carrying bodies in four refrigerated rail cars from the town of Torez would go to Kharkiv, in northeast Ukraine, outside the rebel-held area. The train departed at 7 p.m. local time for a journey that was expected to take hours.
...
Mr. Groysman said that 282 bodies had been found and loaded onto the train, as well as dozens of body parts from as many as 16 other victims, suggesting that officials believed they had recovered most of the remains of the passengers and crew from the Boeing 777. He said that from Kharkiv, the bodies would be flown to Amsterdam, where they would be taken to a laboratory with the latest forensic technology.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/22/w...ne-and-a-robust-crash-investigation.html?_r=0

 

[Emily]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/7/21/crash-investigatorsfightingnearby.html

?People, we are all evacuating?: Residents flee Donetsk clashes

Fighting rages between rebels, Ukraine government forces in regional capital, 50 miles west of where downed jet crashed
July 21, 2014 5:30PM ET
by Sabra Ayres

...

Even as the world?s eyes have focused on the search for answers in the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 in this region last week, the war here has started to reach a new pitch. On Monday the center of Donetsk felt and sounded like a battlefield. Loud explosions, some of them coming in rapid succession, such as those created by multiple missile launchers, could be heard from the city center. Tanks and armored personnel carriers rolled and rattled down the city?s central streets toward the battle near the airport and train station.

Not everyone was in full support of the separatist fighters, but anger against the Ukrainian government seemed to be growing. ?It?s not safe here, but we aren?t the ones that did this,? said Olga Semenchenko, who was rolling her silver suitcase down the sidewalk as her teenage son carried two duffel bags. ?This is America and Russia, and we?re caught in the middle.?

...

?There are idiots on both sides of this. This country is just not normal,? said Anton Mikhailenko, who was watching a thick cloud of black smoke rise from the direction of the airport. The smoke turned out to be from a direct hit on a car parts factory.
Ukrainian troop
Ukrainian troops on the move in the eastern Ukrainian town of Kramatorsk, July 21, 2014. Gleb Garanich / Reuters

Mikhailenko said he couldn?t leave the city because his ex-wife has custody of his kids, whom he couldn?t leave behind. He, like many others in Donetsk, had wide-ranging theories about why the fighting was now focused so close to Donetsk?s center.

?Maybe they don?t want those bodies to be able to get out of Torez, so they are trying to ruin the railroad,? he said, referring to the trains carrying the victims of the plane crash, which have been stored on wagons waiting on the tracks in Torez, nine miles from the crash sites. ?Who knows who has something to hide? Probably both sides.?...

 

[Emily]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/24518223/train-delay-adds-to-mh17-crash-probe-fears/

Train delay adds to MH17 crash probe fears
AAP

By Paul Osborne and Julian Drape July 22, 2014, 5:50 pm
Fighting in Ukraine has delayed the transfer of bodies to investigators seeking answers to the MH17 crash and the repatriation of almost 300 dead.

A refrigerated train carrying the remains of Australian and other victims of the Malaysia Airlines flight left a rebel-controlled town in eastern Ukraine bound for the country's second-biggest city, Kharkiv, where it will be met by Australian officials.

However, Dutch forensic experts in Kharkiv told AAP the operation would take longer than expected because of fighting....

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Train arrived in Kharkov

Tuesday 22 Jul 2014, 10:41 (Update: 22-07-14, 10:48)

Reuters

The train with aircrash victims in Ukraine has arrived in Kharkov. The cooling wagons departed early this morning from Donetsk, in the territory controlled by the rebels and drove a few hours later into safe area. Kharkov is controlled by the government.

The bodies are removed from the train and taken to the airport. There's a Hercules aircraft from the Dutch air force , in which the victims are flown to the Netherlands for identification.

It is not yet known to what Dutch airport the bodies go, and what time they are expected there.

NOS.nl

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Malaysian passenger plane crashes on Ukraine-Russia border

Tomorrow first plane with crash victims in the Netherlands

Added: Tuesday 22 Jul 2014, 13:05

The first plane with crash victims in Ukraine will arrive in the Netherlands tomorrow. It will land in Eindhoven, Prime Minister Rutte announced at a press conference.

NOS