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Russia is lying, say Malaysia Airlines flight 17 victims’ families at murder trial

  • Prosecutors say a Russian surface-to-air missile brought down the plane as it was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all 298 people on board
  • Moscow has denied all responsibility and refuses to extradite the three Russians and a Ukrainian who are on trial in the Netherlands for murder

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Debris from the crashed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 is seen near Donetsk, Ukraine, in 2014. Photo: EPA
Reutersin Amsterdam
Relatives of the 298 victims of Malaysia Airlines flight 17 on Monday accused Russia of lying about its alleged role in bringing down the plane as they began testifying in the Dutch murder trial of four suspects.
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International investigators concluded that the passenger plane was shot down over eastern Ukraine with a missile fired by pro-Russian rebels. Moscow denies all responsibility.

“They are lying, we know they are lying and they know that we know that they are lying,” Ria van der Steen, who lost her father and stepmother on the flight, told the court, saying she was citing the late Soviet dissident writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn.

Ria van der Steen (left) in the courtroom on Monday. She lost her father and stepmother on the flight. Photo: Reuters
Ria van der Steen (left) in the courtroom on Monday. She lost her father and stepmother on the flight. Photo: Reuters

The Dutch woman was the first of dozens of relatives who will be given an opportunity to speak or submit written statements over the coming three weeks.

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MH17 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was hit by what international investigators and prosecutors say was a Russian surface-to-air missile that originated from a Russian base just across the Ukrainian border.

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