Trial of any suspects in downing of MH17 aircraft to be held in Dutch court
The Hague — The trials of any suspects arrested in the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over war-torn eastern Ukraine will be held in the Netherlands, Dutch officials announced on Wednesday. All 298 people on board were killed when the plane was downed on July 17 2014 on a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. A joint international investigation has determined that the Boeing 777 jet was hit by a Russian-made BUK missile fired from rebel-held territory, but a separate criminal probe has yet to arrest any suspects. Now the countries leading the joint investigation team — Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine — have agreed that any trials will be carried out within the Dutch legal system. The countries "decided that the suspects should be prosecuted in the Netherlands, a process that will be rooted in ongoing international co-operation and support", Dutch foreign minister Bert Koenders said in a statement. "This co-operation is vital, given the compl...
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