Dutch judges will begin to hear evidence on the downing of the Malaysia Airlines flight, in which almost 300 people died. Four pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine stand accused of murder.
The trial is entering critical stages after more than a year of preliminary sessions and delaysImage: picture-alliance/dpa/R.Van Lonkhuijsen
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The trial of four individuals suspected of being involved in the downing of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014 started on Monday in the Netherlands.
The court is in a high-security location near Schiphol airport in the Netherlands due to the large number of Dutch victims from the incident.
"The court will open the MH17 criminal trial proper and, through examining and discussing the content of the prosecution file, elucidate the key questions which it has already begun to address," the court said in a statement.
The trial will start with hearings looking at the evidence and the investigation into the crash. Defense and prosecution will then have time to discuss any issues, lasting until July 9.
Relatives of the victims will be allowed to address the court at some point in September.
"On the one hand we want to know exactly what happened, why it happened and who was responsible, but the price you pay for that is that there is also information released that could be shocking," Piet Ploeg, a spokesman for the relatives, told Reuters. Ploeg's brother and his family died in the crash.
War crimes in Ukraine?
A new UN report accuses pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine of possible war crimes. The authors also accuse the Ukrainian army of having done wrong there.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The war enters the cities
Fighting between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian army has intensified around the cities of Luhansk and Donetsk. The situation for the local population keeps getting worse, the UN Human Rights Commission finds. It especially accuses the pro-Russian separatists of severe crimes.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
In mourning for father and son
More than 1,100 people have been killed in the fighting since mid-April, according to the UN. Not just armed fighters, but also countless civilians, among them many children, have lost their lives. These people grieve for a father and his little son who died in artillery fire near Luhansk.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Heavy weaponry in residential areas
Civilians often get caught in the crossfire, according to the UN. Heavy weaponry is being employed in densely populated areas not just by the separatists, like here in Donetsk, but also by the Ukrainian army. The United Nations urge all sides to exercise better measures of precaution to protect civilians’ lives.
Image: Getty Images
Reign of terror by separatists
The report accuses the pro-Russian separatists of abducting, torturing and executing people. The separatists are "rough and brutal" as well as "well-equipped and organized" and often under the command of Russian nationals, according to the UN Human Rights Commission. The UN body has 39 observers on the ground and has documented more than 800 cases of abductions by separatists since mid-April.
Image: picture-alliance/AP
Fleeing the East
More than 100,000 people have had to leave their homes. Many live in emergency shelters, like here in Kharkiv, to escape the terror of the separatists and the fighting. There are also reports about Russian-speaking residents of eastern Ukraine who have fled to neighboring Russia.
Image: DW/A. Ainduchowa
Shooting down MH17: a war crime
On July 17, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 crashed in eastern Ukraine. All 298 people on board were killed. The passenger jet was most probably shot down by pro-Russian separatists. That could be interpreted as a war crime, said UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Justice in The Hague?
Those responsible could face charges before the International Criminal Court. The UN Human Rights Commissioner warns: anybody violating international law will be brought to justice. That also applies to foreign fighters involved in the conflict.
Image: AP
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Who is on trial?
Three Russian nationals — Oleg Pulatov, Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinsky — and one Ukrainian citizen, Leonid Kharchenko, are being tried in absentia for the crime of downing MH17.
Pulatov is the only one represented in the proceedings, but denies involvement. The other three do not have lawyers appointed to them.
What happened in the downing of MH17?
The Boeing 777 jet was en route from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. It was shot down as it flew over a part of eastern Ukraine that is under the control of pro-Russian rebels.
All 298 people on board — including 196 Dutch citizens — died.
Investigations showed that the BUK missile that downed the plane originally belonged to the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade of the Russian Army based in the city of Kursk.
