MH17: Anger mounts towards Russia as inspectors still denied access – live blog Armed separatists deny full access to crash site for investigators and media amid accusations rebels are tampering with evidence and removing bodies from the site Putin given ‘one last chance’ as world fury mounts Rebels fuel chaos as rotting corpses pile up on the roadside MH17: Russian media pins blame on Ukraine government Putin’s hard line will push Russia into an ever-tighter corner MH17: Russia is not yet ready to abandon rebel groups Abbott increases pressure on Russia as Bishop heads for UN Kiev and rebels hold talks to set up crash site security zone Obama says MH17 is a ‘wake-up call’ for Europe 3.48pm AEST Papua New Guinean prime minister Peter O’Neill has expressed condolences to the countries which lost people on the flight. This is a tragic day for people from many nations,” he said in a statement. To the best of our knowledge there were no Papua New Guinean citizens were on board the aircraft. Our sympathy and prayers are with the families who now are left to deal with this tragic loss. There needs to be a United Nations-led investigation into the crash of this aircraft. If it is found that this aircraft was brought down by human action, justice must be sought. Today, we pray for the families of the men, women and children who lost their lives on this flight. 3.36pm AEST Tributes pour in as the identities of passengers are revealed. Australia has lost at least 36 people, among them 28 passport holders, and 10 British citizens lost their lives. Malaysia lost 43 people, including the 15 crew. In Melbourne, an international Aids conference begins today, and the official opening will first honour the six delegates who died on board. As hundreds of delegates filed into the Melbourne Convention Centre on Sunday ahead of the official opening of the largest Aids conference in the world, some of the most brilliant minds in the HIV field were missing. Red HIV ribbons adorned the doors of buildings throughout the precinct and people wore them on their shirts, symbols of the conference taking place but also a sign of remembrance for the six researchers and advocates bound for the conference who were killed on Malaysian Airlines flight MH17. 3.08pm AEST The ABC’s Samantha Hawley talks to Malaysia Airlines employees who are scared about flying now after two disasters involving the airline’s planes this year. 3.06pm AEST Just met with Dutch contingent at #AIDS2014. They’re emotionally drained after last couple of days. Loss is huge ift.tt/1yK54ZM 2.57pm AEST The Guardian’s Southeast Asia correspondent Kate Hodal has just spoken with the president of the Malaysian Pilots Association. This from Kate: The Malaysian Pilots Association has condemned the apparent shooting down of MH17 as a “blatant and uncivilised act” and has warned all pilots to refrain from flying over conflict zones in order to “prevent the tragedy from recurring”. Captain Manan Mansor, who stands as the association’s president and is an ex-Malaysia Airlines pilot, told the Guardian that he himself would have questioned MH17′s route over the Ukraine-Russia border, given that it was known to be in conflict. 2.17pm AEST Just passed by #Donetsk morgue. The refrigerated truck with #mh17 bodies has gone. Moved by sepaeatists. It is not clear where? 1.37pm AEST Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to visit Australia in November for the G20 summit, but two state premiers have said he should be barred unless he backs an independent investigation in the MH17. “There needs to be proper security about the site, protect the remains, protect possessions, protect the evidence,” Victorian Premier Denis Napthine said today. 1.21pm AEST The OSCE said their investigators did not encounter as much intimidation on the second day at the site. OSCE spokesman Michael Bociurkiw said they were given more time than previously, and counted 55 body bags. He said an individual who “seemed to be leading the body recovery and bagging operation” explained the recovery process: bodies are located and the position marked, and then bagged and moved to the road side. 12.53pm AEST This report from BuzzFeed’s Max Seddon gives a startling account of the recovery and investigation operations going on – or not going on – at the crash site. Read the article in full here. Below is an excerpt. Two days after MH17 was shot down over east Ukraine turning a simmering separatist conflict into a crisis of global proportions the crash site remains a hideous mess that will make it harder for investigators to establish what happened and for relatives to get peace. As Ukraine, Russia, and Moscow-backed rebels trade barbs over which side fired the missile that brought the Boeing 777 jet down, the bodies of the 298 passengers and crew killed instantaneously were still strewn across a field, decomposing in the 85-degree heat. 12.32pm AEST OSCE monitors were only allowed 75 minutes at the crash site on Friday, and less than three hours on Saturday, according to a statement released by the US state department. We are deeply concerned by the Russia-backed separatists refusal to allow OSCE monitors safe and unfettered access to the crash site of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. Yesterday, the monitors were allowed only 75 minutes at the site. Today, they were allowed less than three hours. Thus far, the separatists have only allowed monitors to have limited access to a small area. The site is not secure, and there are multiple reports of bodies being removed, parts of the plane and other debris being hauled away, and potential evidence tampered with. This is unacceptable and an affront to all those who lost loved ones and to the dignity the victims deserve. It is critical that there be a full, credible, and unimpeded international investigation as quickly as possible. Russia-backed separatists committed Thursday to allowing full access to international observers and response teams and Russia supported an OSCE statement calling for the same. We urge Russia to honor its commitments and to publicly call on the separatists to do the same. – Jen Psaki, department spokeswoman 11.36am AEST A special mass has been held in Melbourne to remember victims of the crash. At least six delegates from the international Aids conference, which begins today, died on board flight MH17. 11.31am AEST In the hours after the Malaysia Airlines crash in Ukraine, evidence assembled from various sources appeared to point the blame at militants armed with Russian missiles, writes the Observer. Read the piece – which looks at social media, photographs, intercepts and satellite detection - in full here. 11.05am AEST According to the Interpreter Mag, a Russian ultranationalist has bragged about separatists possessing and repairing an anti-aircraft Buk system with the assistance of Russian “civil society.” The speech by Sergei Kurginyan – according to the Interpreter’s translation – claims Russian civil society would not supply military technology such as this to separatists, but would “of course” assist with repairs. But, our very talented and even brilliant electronics experts will of course repair – I think they’ve even already repaired, it seems to me – the BUK system seized from the Ukrainian bandits – the Banderaites [supporters of Ukrainian war hero Stepan Bandera]– I don’t want to say ‘the Ukrainian people’ but the bandits and the Banderaites and in the very near future, I simply know a brilliant electronics expert who has flown there — precisely as a representative of civil society who will help the fraternal people. In very short time it will get it back working. It will be fixed, yes? It might even turn out there are even several systems.” 10.27am AEST Dutch embassy in #Kyiv tonight. #MH17 ift.tt/1rrZZof 10.24am AEST Australian victims will be honoured at memorial services across the country today. 10.13am AEST Leaders of the nations which lost citizens on the flight have expressed their anger at Russia’s response to the disaster. Australian prime minister Tony Abbott told ABC a short time ago that Russia cant wash its hands of this. 10.03am AEST Malaysia Airlines has released the full manifest of passengers and crew who were on board. The breakdown of nationalities is as listed below, but some passengers were residents of one country while citizens of another, varying the death toll for individual countries. Netherlands 193 (including 1 dual Netherlands/USA citizen) 10.03am AEST We continue our rolling coverage of the aftermath of the MH17 crash. You can read the latest story here, and the earlier live coverage here. Continue reading…
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 08:19:45 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015