Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was likely struck by “high-energy objects from outside the aircraft,” causing it to crash in eastern Ukraine, Dutch investigators concluded on Tuesday.
However, the report by the Dutch Safety Board did not say a missile shot down the Boeing 777 or who was responsible for the tragedy, the Associated Press reported.
Flight MH17 was en route from the Netherlands to Kuala Lumpur on July 17 when it was allegedly hit by a missile over a territory controlled by pro-Russian rebels in Donetsk, Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.
“The damage observed in the forward section of the aircraft appears to indicate that the aircraft was penetrated by a large number of high-energy objects from outside the aircraft,” the report said.
[quote text_size=”small” author=”–Dutch Safety Board”]
It is likely that this damage resulted in a loss of structural integrity of the aircraft, leading to an in-flight break up.
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The board is leading the probe and is expected to issue a full investigation report within a year of the crash. A total of 193 passengers in the ill-fated flight are Dutch nationals.
Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak said in a statement the conclusion “leads to the strong suspicion that a surface-to-air missile brought MH17 down, but further investigative work is needed before we can be certain.”
But nearly two months after the tragedy, bodies and debris are still found in the crash site.
A burnt crater is visible in the area, close to the intense fighting between the separatists and Ukrainian forces in the past weeks, and scattered with the plane’s debris and the passengers’ personal effects.
Rebels reportedly asked residents not to move parts of the plane but the wallets and other valuables were turned over to them.
