Countries mark anniversary of MH17 disaster

Today marks the one year anniversary of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, which was shot down in Ukraine in 2014, resulting in the deaths of 298 people.

Services are being held to honour the victims in Hrabove, the Ukrainian village where the tragedy took place, as well as in Canberra, Australia, in memory of the 38 citizens it lost in the crash, and Nieuwegein, in the Netherlands, which lost 193 victims.

According to a release from Malaysia Airlines, the company has made arrangements for family members of the victims to attend the events by providing flight tickets, accommodation and transportation to the venues.

The aircraft was headed from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was hit by what is widely believed to be a missile launched by Pro-Russian Ukrainian rebels.

A report by the BBC states that The Netherlands is leading a criminal investigation into the crash, and is being supported by Belgium, Australia and Ukraine.

Officials in the UK, Australia, the Netherlands and Malaysia have called for a UN tribunal to prosecute the suspects of the alleged attack, an idea that has been rejected by Russian president Vladimir Putin, who denies any Russian or rebel involvement in the tragedy.

A final report on the cause of the crash is expected to be released by the Dutch Safety Board in October.