MH17 shot down by Buk missile brought from Russia, say investigators

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was downed over eastern Ukraine by a Buk missile brought in from Russia and fired from a village under the control of pro-Russian separatists, a team of international prosecutors said Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference in the Dutch city of Nieuwegein, Wilbert Paulissen, the head of the Dutch National Detective Force, said there was conclusive evidence that a missile from the Russian-made Buk 9M38 missile system downed the passenger flight on July 17, 2014, killing all 298 people on board.

GILZE-RIJEN, NETHERLANDS - OCTOBER 13: A general view of the cockpit wreckage at the Gilze-Rijen Military Base on October 13, 2015 in Gilze-Rijen, Netherlands. The reports focus on four subjects: the cause of the crash, the issue of flying over conflict areas, the question why Dutch surviving relatives of the victims had to wait two to four days before receiving confirmation from the Dutch authorities that their loved ones were on board flight MH17, and lastly the question to what extent the occupants of flight MH17 were consciously of the crash. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

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The Buk was returned to Russian territory the next day, said Paulissen, presenting the findings of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), a Dutch-led group of prosecutors gathering evidence for a potential criminal trial into the downing of MH17.

“We have no doubt whatsoever that conclusions we are presenting today are accurate,” he said.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the findings pointed to the “direct involvement” of Russia, and said an investigation was ongoing into specific suspects and their “place in the chain of command” in order to pursue a criminal case.

Ukraine: Everything you need to know about how we got here

Russia, which has repeatedly denied any involvement in the downing of the plane, rejected the report.

“None of the missile complexes, including BUK, have ever crossed Russian-Ukrainian border,” said Russia’s spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, Igor Konashenkov, in a statement.

“All data presented today is based upon two sources – the Internet and Ukrainian security services. That’s why the objectivity of this data, and so of all the conclusions made based on it, leaves us with doubt.”

Ahead of MH17 report, Russia says if plane shot down, Ukraine pulled trigger

Prosecutor: 100 people linked

Evidence presented by the JIT Wednesday included intercepted phone calls, witness accounts and material on social media that investigators said established the missile system’s route in a convoy into Ukraine, which was displayed in a computer-generated animation.

Debris from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 sits in a field at the crash site in Hrabove, Ukraine, on September 9, 2014. The Boeing 777 was shot down July 17, 2014, over Ukrainian territory controlled by pro-Russian separatists. All 298 people on board were killed. In an October 2015 report, Dutch investigators found the flight was shot down by a warhead that fit a Buk rocket, referring to Russian technology, Dutch Safety Board Chairman Tjibbe Joustra said.

Australian and Dutch experts examine the area of the crash on August 3, 2014.

A woman walks with her bicycle near the crash site on August 2, 2014.

Police secure a refrigerated train loaded with bodies of passengers from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 as it arrives in a Kharkiv, Ukraine, factory on July 22, 2014.

A pro-Russian rebel passes wreckage from the crashed jet near Hrabove on Monday, July 21, 2014.

Wreckage from the jet lies in grass near Hrabove on July 21, 2014.

A man covers his face with a rag as members of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Dutch National Forensic Investigations Team inspect bodies in a refrigerated train near the crash site in eastern Ukraine on July 21, 2014.

Emergency workers carry a victim's body in a bag at the crash site on July 21, 2014.

A piece of the plane lies in the grass in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region on July 21, 2014.

An armed pro-Russian rebel stands guard next to a refrigerated train loaded with bodies in Torez, Ukraine, on Sunday, July 20, 2014.

Ukrainian State Emergency Service employees sort through debris on July 20, 2014, as they work to locate the deceased.

A woman covers her mouth with a piece of fabric July 20, 2014, to ward off smells from railway cars that reportedly contained passengers' bodies.

Toys and flowers sit on the charred fuselage of the jet as a memorial on July 20, 2014.

People search a wheat field for remains in the area of the crash site on July 20, 2014.

A woman walks among charred debris at the crash site on July 20, 2014.

Emergency workers load the body of a victim onto a truck at the crash site on Saturday, July 19, 2014.

Emergency workers carry the body of a victim at the crash site on July 19, 2014.

A large piece of the main cabin is under guard at the crash site on July 19, 2014.

Victims' bodies are placed by the side of the road on July 19, 2014, as recovery efforts continue at the crash site. International officials lament the lack of a secured perimeter.

A man looks through the debris at the crash site on July 19, 2014.

An envelope bearing the Malaysia Airlines logo is seen at the crash site on July 19, 2014.

Armed rebels walk past large pieces of the Boeing 777 on July 19, 2014.

Ukrainian rescue workers walk through a wheat field with a stretcher as they collect the bodies of victims on July 19, 2014.

A woman looks at wreckage on July 19, 2014.

Pro-Russian rebels stand guard as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe delegation arrives at the crash site on Friday, July 18, 2014.

A woman walks through the debris field on July 18, 2014.

Pro-Russian rebels stand guard at the crash site.

Wreckage from Flight 17 lies in a field in Shaktarsk, Ukraine, on July 18, 2014.

A man covers a body with a plastic sheet near the crash site on July 18, 2014. The passengers and crew hailed from all over the world, including Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Germany and Canada.

A diver searches for the jet's flight data recorders on July 18, 2014.

Coal miners search the crash site.

Wreckage from the Boeing 777 lies on the ground July 18, 2014.

People search for bodies of passengers on July 18, 2014.

A woman walks past a body covered with a plastic sheet near the crash site July 18, 2014.

Belongings of passengers lie in the grass on July 18, 2014.

People inspect the crash site on Thursday, July 17, 2014.

People walk amid the debris at the site of the crash.

Debris smoulders in a field near the Russian border.

Fire engines arrive at the crash site.

A man stands next to wreckage.

Debris from the crashed jet lies in a field in Ukraine.

Family members of those aboard Flight 17 leave Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam, Netherlands.

A large piece of the plane lies on the ground.

Luggage from the flight sits in a field at the crash site.

A couple walks to the location at Schiphol Airport where more information would be given regarding the flight.

Flight arrivals are listed at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia.

Debris from the Boeing 777, pictured on July 17, 2014.

A man inspects debris from the plane.

Wreckage from the plane is seen on July 17, 2014.

A man talks with security at Schiphol Airport on July 17, 2014.

Wreckage burns in Ukraine.

A man stands next to the wreckage of the airliner.

People inspect a piece of wreckage believed to be from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. This image was posted to Twitter.

People inspect a piece of wreckage believed to be from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. This image was posted to Twitter.

A piece of wreckage believed to be from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. This image was posted to Twitter.

A piece of wreckage believed to be from MH17. This image was posted to Twitter.

An airsickness bag believed to be from MH17. This image was posted to Twitter.

A piece of wreckage believed to be from MH17. This image was posted to Twitter.

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crashes in Ukraine

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Paulissen said the missile was fired from farmland near the village of Pervomaysk which was under the control of pro-Russian rebels at the time – a conclusion supported by satellite data from the United States and the European Space Agency.

Dutch prosecutor Fred Westerbeke said there were about 100 people linked “in one way or another” to the transportation and firing of the Buk, but they were yet to formally identify individual suspects.

He said prosecutors were still seeking a clearer picture around the chain of command: “Who ordered to transport the Buk, who ordered the MH17 to be shot down, if the crew took their own decisions, or were they operating on instructions from above?”

But they believed there was a realistic chance that the perpetrators would be brought to justice, he said.

Investigators said they were not about to make any statement about the involvement of Russia, or Russians, in the downing of the plane.

First responder: What I saw at Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site

Family members grateful

The findings are the first released by the group, comprised of prosecutors from the Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, Malaysia and Ukraine, in its criminal investigation into the downing of Flight MH17. Nearly 200 of those on board were Dutch citizens.

Family members of the victims were briefed ahead of the public release of the report.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

The passengers and crew aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 came from around the world and held a wide range of hopes and dreams. While the identities of the 298 people aboard have not been release by the airline, CNN has been able to confirm some of them via family, friends and social media.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Karlijn Keijzer, 25, was a champion rower from Amsterdam who showed much passion and leadership in the United States as a member of the team at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Miguel Calehr, left, and his older brother Shaka were both aboard the flight. They were on their way to Bali to visit their grandmother. Their middle brother, Mika, was supposed to be on the flight as well, but it was fully booked.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

A 77-year-old teacher and Roman Catholic nun, Sister Philomene Tiernan, was on the flight, according to Australia's Kincoppal-Rose Bay School of the Sacred Heart. The school principal described Tiernan as "wonderfully wise and compassionate."

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

On Friday, President Barack Obama told reporters that an American, Quinn Lucas Schansman, was aboard. His Facebook page said he was a student at International Business School Hogeschool van Amsterdam.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

The World Health Organization was able to confirm to CNN that their employee Glenneth Thomas was on board and heading to the International AIDS Conference scheduled to begin this weekend in Melbourne, Australia.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Shazana Salleh, a Malaysian national, was one of 15 crew members aboard.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Prominent Dutch scientist Joep Lange was a pioneer in HIV research and a former president of the International AIDS Society, which organizes the International AIDS Conference.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Jacqueline van Tongeren, partner of HIV researcher Joep Lange, was on the flight with him.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Medical student Andrei Anghel, 24, boarded Flight 17 on his way to vacation in Bali.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Darryl Dwight Gunawan, 20, was traveling home to the Philippines after a summer vacation with his family. His mother, Irene Gunawan, 54, and sister Sheryl Shania Gunawan, 15, were also aboard.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

John Paulissen, his wife Yuli Hastini and their two children, Martin Arjuna and Sri were all aboard the flight.

Malaysia Flight 17 passengers remembered —

Tessa van der Sande, an Amnesty International employee, was on the flight.

Malaysia Flight 17 passengers remembered —

Angeline Premila Rajandaran was a flight attendant, one of the 15 crew on board.

Malaysia Flight 17 passengers remembered —

A lover of French literature, Adi Soetjipto, 73, was returning home to Jakarta, Indonesia, after her annual visit to her mother in the Netherlands, nephew Joss Wibisono said.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Nick Norris and his three grandchildren, Otis, 8, Evie,10 and Mo, 12, were all aboard the flight.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Pim de Kuijer was also on his way to the International AIDS Conference.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Husband and wife Albert and Maree Rizk were among the passengers on board.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Musician Cor Schilfder was on vacation with girlfriend NeeltjeTol, a florist.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Shun Poh Fan and wife Jenny Loh were restaurant owners in the Netherlands.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Fatima Dycynski was an engineer and the founder and CEO of Xoterra Space.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Arjen and Yvonne Ryder

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered —

Flight attendant Sanjid Singh Sandu swapped flights at the last moment on Thursday and boarded MH17 in Amsterdam so he could get home early, his parents told CNN.

Malaysia Flight 17 victims remembered

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Dennis Schouten, whose brother-in-law and brother-in-law’s girlfriend were killed, said he was grateful to the JIT for having put “some of the conspiracies” around the flight to rest.

“We can be sure it was a Buk installation that has brought down MH17,” he said.

Schouten said that the findings meant that Russia had “to do some explaining.”

“We can surely say they have a part in this story,” he said.

He said the key step to get justice for the victims was to identify those responsible for ordering the shootdown.

“They want to get to know their names. That is the most important thing. We know everything else but who.”

Piet Ploeg, a relative of another MH17 victim, said “there was evidence before that Russia was involved, but now [we] are sure.”

Last year, a civilian investigation conducted by the Dutch Safety Board concluded that the Boeing aircraft was shot down by a Russian-made Buk missile. But the investigation was not required to assign blame for the missile strike, and did not say who was responsible.

Russia: Ukraine involvement ‘bad joke’

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement Wednesday that the JIT had suspended Moscow from full participation in the investigation, relegating its efforts to only a minor role.

“It sounds like a bad joke, but at the same time they made Ukraine a full member of the investigative commission, giving it an opportunity to forge evidence and wrap the case in their favor,” she said.

The statement pointed to radar data unveiled by Russia’s defense ministry earlier this week, which it claimed that if the plane was shot down, it was by Ukrainian forces.

Justin Bronk, a research fellow specializing in combat airpower and technology at the Royal United Services Institute, said Russia’s suggestion of Ukrainian responsibility was “absolutely ludicrous, for fairly simple reasons.”

“The Ukrainian military hasn’t fired a single surface-to-air missile in the entire multi-year conflict because the rebels don’t have an air force,” he said.

“So the only kind of potentially hostile aircraft they might encounter would be Russian air force jets and the last thing Ukraine wants is to give Russia a pretext for even more overt military confrontation on its soil.”

He said the notion that the Ukrainian forces would fire at an airliner that had been in contact with their country’s air traffic control and was leaving the country’s air space was “just insulting.”

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

This satellite image shows the primary crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 between the towns of Hrabove (spelled Grabove in Russian) and Rasypnoye, Ukraine. The Boeing 777 was shot down Thursday, July 17, with a surface-to-air missile in Ukrainian territory controlled by pro-Russian rebels. All 298 people aboard died. The satellite imagery was collected on Sunday, July 20, by Airbus Defense & Space, and was analyzed by AllSource Analysis. Click through to see more of the satellite imagery:

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

Multiple locations with debris are pointed out in this image, including the site of the plane's tail section.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

The burned fields of the primary crash site are pictured.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

The plane's tail section appears down a road from temporary shelters and tents.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

More debris is scattered to the left of the tail section among a field and near buildings.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

Debris has been spotted almost two miles away from the primary crash site.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site —

Refrigerated train cars are visible in this satellite image. Search teams have recovered 272 bodies, 251 of which have been loaded on trains with refrigerators, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said.

Aerial view of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash site

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In July, Malaysia Airlines settled damages with the families of most of the passengers killed on Flight MH17, an attorney representing some of the families confirmed.

The airline said Wednesday it was monitoring the progress of the JIT’s criminal investigation closely.

“We are ensuring that all those affected by this tragic incident are kept fully informed. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are to the families and friends of the passengers and crew onboard Flight MH17.”

CNN’s Sandi Sidhu, Lindsay Isaac, Alla Eshchenko, Damien Ward and Phil Black contributed to this report.