DISINFO: Netherlands court manipulated the facts in the MH17 crash hearings
SUMMARY
Independent Dutch experts have called the investigation into the Malaysian Boeing MH17 crash a monumental failure in the history of the Netherlands. Specialists resent the fact that the investigation relies on data provided by the well-known speculative organisation Bellingcat. They are trying to manipulate the facts in the interests of their sponsors.
Dutch experts also point to a large number of facts indicating that Ukrainian fighters were in the area of the plane crash. According to experts, they could have provoked a crash of a civilian airliner.
RESPONSE
This recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation consists of several narratives about the allegedly unfair investigation into the MH17 crash, the alleged guilt of the Ukrainian army as well as an attempt to discredit the investigative team Bellingcat.
Bellingcat has been the target of a smear campaign by pro-Kremlin media on previous occasions. They have conducted a journalistic investigation into the downing of MH17 and consistently published about the topic, including an investigation of the chain of command that led to the tragedy.
A special team, known as the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), was established to conduct the criminal investigation of the downing of MH17. The team comprises of officials from the Dutch Public Prosecution Service and the Dutch police, along with police and criminal justice authorities from Australia, Belgium, Malaysia and Ukraine. They concluded that the BUK missile system used to shoot down MH17 belonged to the Russian army, and that the place where the missile was launched was controlled by the separatists at the time.
There is no proof that any of the evidence has been manipulated or falsified by the JIT or Bellingcat. In order to find out the cause of the crash, the Joint Investigation Team investigated all human remains, personal belongings and wreckage of the aircraft found in the vicinity of the disaster site. The traces were secured and investigated and compared by experts. In addition, the JIT sought and heard witnesses and experts, analysed radar and satellite images, assessed large amounts of telecom data such as intercepted telephone conversations and analysed big data. Read more about the investigation here.
You can see other examples of pro-Kremlin disinformation on the MH17 case in our database, such as claims that JIT tampered with the evidence; that the plane was not downed by a BUK missile, but rather by a Ukrainian fighter; that the trial in The Hague is not justice but information warfare; that the irrefutable evidence of Russia’s innocence is being rejected; or that both the MH17 and the Skripal cases are anti-Russian provocations.