Malaysian Airlines has vowed to "leave no stone unturned" in its investigation into the circumstances surrounding today's tragic plane crash.
Flight MH17 was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it crashed near the Russia-Ukraine border this afternoon. All 295 passengers and crew are believed to have died and the airline confirmed in a press conference tonight that it has begun the process of contacting their next of kin.
The beleagured airline stated that a disaster team has been sent to Kiev to handle the aftermath of the crash, revealing that the plane did not make a distress call prior to landing.
It is believed that the plane was brought down by a ground to air missile launched by a seperatist group but Malaysian Airlines said that it has not yet been able to verify the cause of the horrific incident.
While it had earlier been speculated that restrictions had been introduced to the airspace where the tragedy took place in the face of rising tensions, the airline said that the plane's route had been declared safe prior to take-off.
It has also been confirmed that all 15 crew members were Malaysian and there were 154 Dutch passengers, 27 Australian, 23 Malaysian, 11 Indonesian, six from the UK, four from Germany, four from Belgium, three from the Philippines and one from Canada on board.
"No stone will be left unturned. If it transpires that the plane was indeed shot down we insist that the perpetrators must be swiftly brought to justice," said a spokesperson.
"This is a tragic day in what has already been a tragic year for Malaysia... our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of those on board the flight. I cannot imagine what they must be going through at this painful time."
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