NEWSWATCH: “Russia Implicated in Shooting Down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 Over Ukraine” – New York Times
A Dutch-led investigation has concluded that the powerful surface-to-air missile system … used to shoot down a Malaysia Airlines plane over Ukraine two years ago, killing all 298 on board, was trucked in from Russia at the request of Russian-backed separatists and returned to Russia the same night. … largely confirm[ing] the already widely documented Russian government role not only in the deployment of the missile system … a Buk, or SA-11, but the subsequent cover up, which continues to this day. …. a team of prosecutors from the Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, Malaysia and Ukraine … appl[ied] standards of evidence admissible in court, while still building a case directly implicating Russia …. With meticulous detail, working with cellphone records, social media, witness accounts and other evidence, Dutch prosecutors traced Russia’s role in deploying the missile system into Ukraine and its attempt to cover its tracks after the disaster. …