Press-release

 

 

2 years after the MH-17 passenger flight downing

- On the 17th of July, it was exactly 2 years after the downing of flight MH17. 298 innocent people died;

- Together with Australia, Malaysia, Ukraine and Belgium, the Netherlands formed a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to conduct the criminal investigation.
- The Netherlands has a coordinating role in the Joint Investigation Team (JIT);

- We feel it is important to give you an update on the latest state of affairs;

- Our first priority was  repatriation of the victims and their personal belongings. At the moment, 296 out of 298 victims have been identified. Chances are unfortunately slim that the remaining two people, who are of Dutch nationality, will be identified;

- Our second priority was an independent technical investigation into the cause of the crash. This investigation, which was conducted by the Dutch Safety Board, has been concluded. The report of the investigation was published on 13 October 2015;

- Key priority now is bringing individuals responsible for downing MH17 to justice, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2166;

- The JIT has published an online magazine, also available in English, to give an insight in the criminal investigation;

- Preliminary conclusions of JIT are expected in a few months. Further conclusions are expected at the earliest by the end of this year;

- We consider it important that there continues to be a strong international commitment to hold perpetrators to account. We hope we can count on the support.