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Dutch investigators find Buk missile parts possibly connected with MH17 crash

Xinhua, August 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

Several parts from a possible Buk surface-to-air missile system have been found in the disaster area of the MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine, the Dutch Safety Board (DSB) and the Dutch national public prosecutor announced in a joint press release Tuesday.

According to the statement, the parts are of particular interest to the criminal investigation as they can possibly provide more information about who was involved in the crash of MH17.

The parts, which have been secured during a previous recovery mission in eastern Ukraine, are currently in possession of the DSB and the Joint Criminal Investigation Team (JIT), which is led by the Dutch national police and prosecutor.

The JIT will further investigate the origin of these parts and will internationally enlist the help of experts, with among others forensic specialists and weapon experts.

Elsbeth Kleibeuker, spokesperson of the Dutch public prosecutor, confirmed to Xinhua that a total of seven possible rocket parts were found in eastern Ukraine, but could not make public more details on the findings.

"We still have to find out if the parts are of a missile system, and if so, if they are part of a Buk mission system and if that is also the case, if there is a connection with the MH17 crash," Kleibeuker said. "At present, no conclusion can be drawn of a causal connection between the discovered parts and the crash."

Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine on July 17 last year on its way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. All 298 people on board died, of which 296 have been identified so far.

The JIT, in which Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine take part, conducts the criminal investigation and the DSB the investigation into the cause of the crash. In its final report, expected in October this year, the DSB will report more on the discovered parts.

On Sept. 9 last year, the DSB issued its first preliminary report, stating the crash had an external cause, probably as the result of structural damage caused by a large number of high-energy objects that penetrated the aircraft from outside.

Last Monday, a team of international aviation investigators visited air force base Gilze-Rijen to view the reconstruction of a part of the aircraft. Endit