RPT - ICC Lawyer Says MH17 Crash Probe Should Include Russia To Ensure Objectivity
Muhammad Irfan Published September 24, 2021 | 01:30 PM
PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th September, 2021) The Dutch-led investigation (JIT) into the 2014 crash of the MH17 Malaysian flight in eastern Ukraine should have included Russia as keeping it only to the affected countries could have prejudiced its course, Geert-Jan Alexander Knoops, lead counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, told Sputnik.
During the hearing in the case held on September 13, Dutch prosecutors said that Russia allegedly was not fully cooperating on the probe. At the same time, the JIT was the one to ban Moscow from participating in the international investigation.
"For the objectivity of the underlying investigation it would have been better to also have included Russia in the JIT. Now, only the "victim-states" have been involved in the investigation which can have influenced the course of the investigation," Knoops said.
While international law does not forbid the initiation of criminal proceedings in the country where the alleged injured party is residing � most of the victims were Dutch � it was nevertheless possible to choose a location for the trial outside the Netherlands, as a matter of objectivity, Knoops said, recalling the Pan Am flight 103 bombing in Scotland's southern Lockerbie town in 1988.
"For instance, in the Lockerbie case, the international community opted for the trial against the two defendants taking place outside Scotland, namely within the Netherlands. This is therefore a matter of international diplomacy and negotiation rather than based on a rule of international law," he said.
Additionally, the Dutch law holds that victims of an alleged crime can address the court on the impact of this crime on their life but the court cannot use these statements as "evidence."
"Yet it can - when determining the potential punishment of the defendants - take these victims views into account," the ICC official said, noting that this can be done for two purposes � to decide on the potential penalty and for the issue of financial compensation in case the alleged victims did file such claims to the criminal court.
The Kuala Lumpur-bound Malaysian Boeing crashed in July 2014 while flying over a conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, leaving all 298 people aboard dead. An international group of investigators has claimed that the plane was downed by a Buk missile belonging to the Russian armed forces � an allegation repeatedly denied by Moscow.
Russia said it has provided the Dutch investigators not only with Russian radar data but also the documents proving that the Buk missile, which hit the Boeing, actually belonged to the Ukrainian forces and was launched from the territory controlled by Kiev.
Legal proceedings began in the Netherlands on March 9, 2020, with three Russians and one Ukrainian as suspects: Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinsky, Oleg Pulatov, and Leonid Kharchenko. Court hearings on the case began in June.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
SC orders end of encroachments in Karachi
Nazish Jahangir denies viral screenshots, calls them fake
Govt likely to hike electricity price once again
Bismah Maroof announces immediate retirement from international cricket
Malala expresses unwavering support for Gaza people
Selection committee dissolved over Pakistan women cricket team's poor performanc ..
Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz in police uniform at Chung police center
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 25 April 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 25 April 2024
Mired in crisis, Boeing reports another loss
Session Awarding Ceremony 2024 held at Cadet College Muzaffarabad
Austrian ski great Hirscher to make comeback under Dutch flag
More Stories From World
-
Residents protest as Venice launches five-euro entry fee
7 minutes ago -
Portugal marks 50 years of democracy with far right on rise
27 minutes ago -
Pakistan envoy visits TomatoWorld in Netherlands
37 minutes ago -
Chinese defense minister to attend SCO meeting in Kazakhstan
37 minutes ago -
China, Pakistan should engage in greater counter-terrorism cooperation to combat hostile forces: Khu ..
37 minutes ago -
Scottish leader scraps coalition deal with Greens
37 minutes ago
-
Macron, in key speech, warns that Europe 'is mortal'
37 minutes ago -
China continues to battle flood in Pearl River basin
47 minutes ago -
Death toll from Tanzania's flash floods rises to 155: PM
57 minutes ago -
Iron ore futures close higher
1 hour ago -
Two runaway army horses in 'serious condition': UK minister
1 hour ago -
Myanmar's health ministry issues heat advisory amid soaring temperature
1 hour ago