HUNTING JUSTICE
FOUR suspects were today charged with mass murder over the shooting down of flight MH17 which left 298 dead - including 10 Brits.
Three Russians and a Ukrainian were named by a Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) after a five-year probe on the plane crash.
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News of the charges came as the team said they had new evidence the missile launcher used in the cowardly attack was provided by the Russian Federation.
Those leading the investigation are now probing the "chain of command" in Russia to determine exactly how the weapon ended up with the suspects.
And prosecutor Fred Westerbeke said he would go as far up the chain as need be.
"We want to have a better view of the line of command and who was involved. And we do not impose ourselves any limits," he said.
The Malaysia Airline jet was shot out of the sky on July 17, 2014, over territory held by pro-Russian separatists as it was flying from Amsterdam to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.
BRITS KILLED
A missile shattered the Boeing 777 in midair, sending debris and bodies raining down onto farms and fields of sunflowers.
The passenger jet was downed during the height of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine and investigators have blamed pro-Russian separatists, who they say may have accidentally targeted the plane thinking it to be a military aircraft.
The passenger jet - carrying 10 Brits - was always believed to have been shot with a Russian-made Buk surface-to-air missile.
The men named today are Russians Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinsky and Oleg Pulatov, and Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko.
'HORRIFIC CRIME'
It's said all were fighting for Kremlin-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine when the jet was shot down.
Girkin is a former FSB agent who has links to several Russian proxy-conflicts in the region.
Dubinsky is also an ex Russian intelligence officer while Pulatov - nicknamed the Viper - is a former lieutenant colonel in the Russian army.
Kharchenko was the commander of a Ukrainian separatist battalion.
However, some reports have claimed after the atrocity he moved to Russia, settled in the Rostov region
Ukrainian security services told AFP they had "no information" on Kharchenko's whereabouts or whether he was still alive.
Lead prosecutor Fred Westerbeke said international arrest warrants have now been issued for the four bu there are no plans to enforce extradition.
However, they may have to be tried in their absence as Russia has steadfastly refused to cooperate with the probe and is not expected to hand over any of those charged.
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Ukraine's top prosecutor has said the country will try to arrest Kharchenko and, if he is detained, will arrange for him to be tried via video-link.
If he is found guilty, Ukraine will impose a sentence.
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt today branded it a 'horrific crime' and called on Russia to co-operate fully with the investigation.
He said: "The family and friends of those who died deserve justice. Today marks a significant step towards ensuring that those responsible are held accountable.
"The charges brought against these individuals today show that the international community stands together against the impunity of those responsible for the despicable murder of 298 innocent people."
New data confirms the source of the Buk missile that shot down Malaysian Airlines flight MH17
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Investigators in Utrecht, Holland, have accused the suspects of sourcing and firing the missile that struck the passenger plane.
Their high-profile trial will be held in Holland next March.
However, Moscow has already said it does not trust the investigation or its findings.
"Russia was unable to take part in the investigation despite expressing an interest right from the start and trying to join it", said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Last May, a joint Investigation Team (JIT) made up of police officers from Australia, Holland, Belgium, Malaysia and the Ukraine presented the first findings of the two-year Dutch-led probe.
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The group concluded the missile did come from Russia and was fired from territory held by Moscow-backed rebels.
Prosecutor Westerbeke said: "We have evidence showing that Russia provided the missile launcher."
Last year Vladimir Putin called the incident a "terrible tragedy" but insisted Moscow was not to blame and there are other explanations for what happened.
However, the governments of the Netherlands and Australia have said they hold Russia legally responsible.
The JIT, which seeks to try the suspects under Dutch law, has previously said it had a "long list" of persons of interest and appealed for witness help.
The ten Brits killed in the MH17 atrocity
Lawyer John Allen, 44, was on board the Malaysia Airlines jet with wife Sandra and sons Christopher, Julian, and Ian, who are believed to be of Dutch nationality.
He worked for international law firm NautaDutilh and was described by colleagues at the time of the tragedy as “kind, down-to-earth and humorous”.
Andrew Hoare was also named along with students Richard Mayne and Ben Pocock, footie fans Liam Sweeney and John Alder, pilot Cameron Dalziel, UN health worker Glenn Thomas, dog breeder Richard Ayley and RAF man Stephen Anderson.
On Friday, prosecutors announced the release of new findings, prompting widespread reports in Dutch media that suspects will be named.
Today, further detailing its assessment of individuals it alleges were involved in the transportation of the missile.
Among the 12 people named are Girkin and separatist leader Igor Bezler, who was previously identified in voice recordings of phone conversations that took place shortly after the plane was shot down.
Bellingcat accuses Dubinsky of requesting a primed BUK launcher to be sent to his help his forces in the southern city of Snizhne.
Once the missile had been fired, Dubinsky was also involved in the removal of the weapon back to Russia, it claims.
Dubinsky's subordinates Pulatov and Karchenko are alleged to have provided security for the BUK system at its launch site.
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Among the British passengers killed was Liam Sweeney, 28, who was travelling with his friend John Alder to see their beloved Newcastle United play in New Zealand.
His father Barry Sweeney, 57, from Killingworth, North Tyneside, welcomed the development as a "step forward" while acknowledging the great difficulty of ever seeing any of the suspects in court.
He said: "It's not going to bring anyone back, but if I found out why it happened, it would bring a bit of closure."
Mr Sweeney said Liam's mother died two years ago and his own wife is in poor health but he hoped to go to the Netherlands to watch the trial and support the other grieving families.
He said: "I would like to go if I can, when I see all my friends out there, as they all know, it makes us stronger."
Prosecutors have previously said the missile system that brought down the plane came from the Russian 53rd Anti-Aircraft Brigade, based in the western Russian city of Kursk.
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They said their next step would be to identify individual culprits and to attempt to put them on trial.
Family members of the 298 victims, who include 38 Australians, were briefed on the new information ahead of today's news.
Those killed include 38 Australian citizens and residents, 193 Dutch, 43 Malaysians, 12 Indonesians, 10 Britons and one New Zealander.
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