VIJFHUIZEN, Netherlands — Relatives of passengers and crew killed when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over Ukraine gathered on Wednesday to mark the 10th anniversary of the tragedy that claimed 298 lives, over half of whom were Dutch.
Families of the victims blamed Russian-backed rebels for the missile that took down the plane, but Moscow has repeatedly denied responsibility. In 2022, a Dutch court convicted in absentia two Russians and a Ukrainian separatist for their role in the jet’s downing.
Commemoration services took place in the Netherlands, Australia and the site of the crash in the Russia-controlled part of the Donetsk region, as the war in Ukraine raged on.
Hundreds of family members — set to read out the names of all the victims — joined the Dutch king, politicians and diplomats at an event at a memorial in the Netherlands close to Schiphol, the airport the Kuala Lumpur-bound Boeing 777 departed from on July 17, 2014.
Australian Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus represented his country at the Dutch memorial site, where 298 trees were planted to commemorate each victim and sunflowers, like those that grew at the crash site, were sowed.
“Today we remain unwavering in our determination to ensure truth, justice and accountability for the victims and their loved ones,” Dreyfus said.
Many of the families arriving for the service also carried sunflowers, laying them next to trees. Flags of the countries that…
