Netherlands to Sue Russia at Human Rights Court Over MH17

(Bloomberg) -- The Netherlands will sue Russia at the European Court of Human Rights over the downing of passenger flight MH17, nearly six years after one of the deadliest crashes in modern history.

The Dutch government has held Russia liable for the accident since an international investigation found that Russia was responsible for the deployment of the missile installation that was used to down the Malaysia Airlines Bhd flight in 2014.

“Achieving justice for 298 victims of the downing of Flight MH17 is and will remain the government’s highest priority,” Foreign Minister Stef Blok said in a statement Friday. “By taking this step today – bringing a case before the ECHR and thus supporting the applications of the next of kin as much as we can – we are moving closer to this goal.”

Two years ago a team of investigators from five countries said they had found proof that the BUK missile that brought down the Kuala Lumpur-bound Boeing Co. 777 belonged to Russia’s 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade.

Russia’s Justice Ministry categorically denied the country played any role in the downing of MH17 and vowed to defend its interests in the ECHR if the case is brought, the state-run Tass news agency reported.

In March, three Russian nationals were put on trial in the Netherlands over allegations that they had a role in the crash.

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