UPDATE - Int’l probe: MH17 was downed by launcher from Russia

UPDATES WITH MORE BACKGROUND

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR (AA) – An international prosecution team investigating the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 two years ago has concluded that the passenger plane was shot down by a Russian-made missile from an area of eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Moscow rebels.

According to a statement from the Netherlands, the Dutch-led joint investigation team (JIT) said a BUK type missile launcher was brought into Ukraine from Russia.

"Based on the criminal investigation, we have concluded that flight MH17 was downed by a BUK missile of the series 9M83 that came from the territory of the Russian Federation," the statement read.

The investigations also showed that the missile launcher used to down MH17 -- which had been carrying 298 people -- was later taken back to Russia.

Dutch authorities had released interim findings last year, which concluded that a Russian-made BUK missile hit the ill-fated plane.

The interim investigation report, however, did not state the location from where the projectile was fired.

The JIT said many private calls were intercepted during the investigation process and the recordings were made evidence of the findings.

The team also cited witnesses as having seen the missile launcher moved from Russia to Ukraine.

Earlier this week, however, the Russian military and radar producer Lianozovsky Electromechanical Plant cited new data from a civilian radar station which they said showed no signs that a missile had been launched at the plane from rebel-controlled areas.

At the time MH17 was shot down, fierce fighting was taking place in eastern Ukraine between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian government troops --both sides have denied responsibility.

The Russian government had challenged the earlier findings, with the makers of Buk missile systems, Almaz-Antey, saying that experiments proved that one of its missiles could not have been launched from areas under pro-Russia separatist control.

The Kuala Lumpur-bound flight MH17 from Amsterdam was shot down in the troubled Ukrainian state of Donetsk on July 17, 2014, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew on board.

Of the causalities from MH17, 193 were nationals of the Netherlands, 43 of Malaysia and 27 of Australia.