Malaysia says resolved to seeking justice for MH17 victims

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia said yesterday it is resolved to seeking justice for the victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 that was tragically shot down on July 17, 2014.

The Foreign Ministry ( Wisma Putra) said in a statement that Malaysia remained resolute in the pursuit to prosecute those responsible for the act.

I n t h i s rega rd, i t said, Mal aysi a appreci ated the presentation by the Dutch- led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) yesterday on the latest report and the way forward on the criminal investigation as well as its related press statements.

“We will study the findings contained in the report carefully,” Wisma Putra said.

After four years of investigation into the downing of Flight MH17, JIT said the jetliner was shot down by a Russian missile, BUK TELAR.

In a statement published on its website Thursrday, JIT said the team was convinced that a BUK TELAR was used to down MH17, and that it originated from the 53rd Anti Aircraft Missile Brigade ( 53rd Brigade), which is a unit of the Russian Army from Kursk in the Russian Federation.

Wisma Putra said that as a member of the JIT, Malaysia expressed its gratitude for all the hard work of the JIT members that had enabled critical information regarding the tragic incident to be established.

“Malaysia commends the progress on this,” it said.

Wisma Putra said Malaysia had consistently called for and supported a fully transparent, independent and exhaustive investigation process.

Hence, it said, Malaysia reiterated the JIT’s call for the public to come forward to assist in the investigation process and to provide additional supporting evidence against the people directly involved in order for justice to prevail.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the grieving families and the loved ones of the passengers and crew of Flight MH17.

“We owe it to them to do everything possible to bring closure to this tragic incident,” Wisma Putra said.

The Ma l aysi a Ai rl i ne s Boeing 777 was f lying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down over the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine on that fateful day. Al l 298 people on board were killed. — Bernama