1. MH17 developments: Operation Bring Them Home
The first flight of bodies from the crash site in Ukraine is due to arrive at the Dutch military base near Eindhoven around lunchtime today (AEST).
Yesterday evening Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced a major operation to secure and identify the bodies – Operation Bring Them Home. The task force will be coordinated from Ukraine by former Australian Defence Force chief Retired Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, who most recently headed up the search for missing Malaysia Airways jet MH370.
The bodies will be initially processed in Kharkov before being flown to the Netherlands. An Australian C-17 military transport aircraft will help transport bodies out of Ukraine. Australian forensic experts, led by Professor David Ranson, will identify the victims and then relatives will be informed.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte warned the process could take months.
Missing bodies
The BBC reports that only 200 bodies arrived in Kharkov, not 282 as rebels claimed.
According to the BBC, monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have been examining the wreckage, and have found that major pieces of the plane had been cut into and that large parts now looked different.
The BBC reports that Ukraine army spokesman Colonel Andriy Lysenko claimed that Russian military experts, disguised as citizens, had been interfering with evidence at the scene since the crash.