There was never much doubt about what brought down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine on July 17 2014, killing all 298 people on board: a Russian missile, fired from territory controlled by Russian-backed separatists. Still, it was important to see the facts confirmed. On Sept. 28 the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) laid out its case, backed by an array of photo, video and forensic evidence, satellite and radar data, interviews with eyewitnesses and intercepted phone calls. The investigators called the findings “irrefutable”.
The JIT’s preliminary report is the beginning of what is sure to be a long and trying path to justice for the victims. Many had boarded the flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with suitcases stuffed with bathing suits, bound for beach holidays in South-East Asia. They were cut short, the JIT found, by a Russian-made BUK 9M38 surface-to-air missile, which had left Russia that morning. The launcher, and three unused missiles, returned there the day after. The launch site was a field near the town of Pervomaiskiy, under the control of pro-Russian fighters. Investigators say they have some 100 potential suspects, but identifying the perpetrators will be “a matter for the long haul”.
