New aircraft debris found off Tanzania coast: Australian minister

Australian Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester has confirmed Friday that a piece of aircraft debris has been found on Pemba Island, just off the coast of Tanzania.

In a statement, Chester said the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is seeking further information on the debris to ascertain whether it was from the Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777, MH370.

Earlier this week, the ATSB confirmed that debris which earlier this month washed up on Kangaroo Island in south Australia did not come from the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

The latest update from the ATSB comes after photographs of possible passenger luggage, recently found in Madagascar, were released to the public. On Tuesday, the ATSB said any investigation into the photographs was under the jurisdiction of Malaysia.

"It would be difficult to identify any item which does not have any unique markings and is not a part of the aircraft structure," a spokesperson told Xinhua.

He said that "Malaysian authorities are responsible for the investigation into the disappearance of MH370 and would possess the most information about those lost aboard the aircraft and their possessions."

Officials from Malaysia, Australia and the People's Republic of China met on 20-21 June 2016 to discuss a range of matters related to the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight.

"Discussions were productive and will allow each country to brief their respective Minister ahead of a Ministerial Tripartite Meeting proposed for late July," Chester said in the statement.

MH370 was a scheduled passenger flight from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing which disappeared on March 8, 2014 with 239 passengers and crew on board. Endit