The trial of four men accused of downing a Malaysian Airlines plane in Ukraine in 2014, killing all 298 people on board, will begin in Amsterdam on Monday, Reuters reported.
The civilian plane, MH-17, was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014, when it was shot down by a missile fired from territory held by pro-Russia rebels in eastern Ukraine. Citizens of 10 different countries had died.
Russia denied any involvement in the incident but investigators say they have proof that the missile system that shot down the plane came from a military base in the country. The suspects, three Russians and a Ukrainian, allegedly helped arrange the Russian missile system that was used to shoot down the plane.
An international joint investigation team, led by The Netherlands, collected evidence before issuing arrest warrants last year for Russians Sergey Dubinsky, Oleg Pulatov and Igor Girkin, and Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko last year.
Three judges will preside over the high-security trial, which could go on for more than three years, BBC reported.
If convicted, the men could face sentences of up to life in prison. However, Russia does not extradite its citizens, and the Kremlin has questioned the legitimacy of the international investigation. Two weeks have been scheduled for the initial proceedings. The suspects are believed to be in Russia and are not likely to attend the trial.
The families of the victims are expected to attend the hearings. On Sunday, they lined up empty chairs for each seat on the plane during a protest outside the Russian Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands.
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