Three people found guilty of downing MH17 and have been given ‘life-long’ sentences
A Dutch court has confirmed that downed flight MH17 was shot out of the sky by a Russian missile and handed down three life sentences to those involved.
A fourth person was acquitted.
The Netherlands court ruled on Thursday (November 17) that Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was indeed shot down in 2014 by a Russian-made missile that was fired from a field in eastern Ukraine.
"The court is of the opinion that MH17 was brought down by the firing of a [Buk-TELAR surface-to-air] missile from a farm field near Pervomaisk, killing al 283 passengers and 15 crew members," presiding judge Hendrik Steenhuis said, as per Reuters.
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Two Russians and a Ukrainian separatist were found guilty of the murder of the 298 people on board.
They were given prison sentences that would see them behind bars for the rest of their lives.
The court handed down its verdict, stating the missile was launched from the Kremlin-backed Donetsk region of Ukraine to shoot down the passenger jet in July 2014.
"It is crystal clear what the consequence of the attack would be and that is downing the aircraft causing the death of all on board," Steenhuis said.
He added: "Only the most severe punishment is fitting to retaliate for what the suspects have done, which has caused so much suffering to so many victims and so many surviving relatives."
Russians Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinsky were sentenced to life in prison, as was Ukrainian separatist Leonid Kharchenko.
Girkin is a former colonel in Russia's FSB intelligence agency and held the minister of defence title in Donetsk.
Dubinsky was employed by Russia's GRU military intelligence agency and acted as Girkin's deputy.
Prosecutors claim he was in regular contact with Russia, the BBC reports.
Ukrainian man Kharchenko had no formal military background, but prosecutors claim he led a combat unit as a commander in Eastern Ukraine.
Former GRU special forces soldier and deputy head of the intelligence service in Donetsk Oleg Pulatov was acquitted.
The trial concludes Australia and the Netherlands' efforts to seek justice for the 298 killed, which included 80 children.
The Dutch victims numbered 193, while 38 Australians perished in the disaster.
Australia and the Netherlands have both concluded that there was overwhelming evidence MH17 was shot down by a Russian BUK missile.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly denied his country's involvement in the plane attack.
Rachel Lang