Datuk Seri Najib Tun RazakKUALA LUMPUR, July 24 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today said remains of victims from the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH17 plane crash are unlikely to be brought back before the Aidilfitri celebration.
The prime minister said this was due to technicalities involved in the DNA verification process.
"I regret that I have to inform the families concerned (about this development)," he told reporters after signing the condolence book in memory of the 298 people who perished in the plane crash in eastern Ukraine on July 17, at the residence of the Dutch envoy to Malaysia, Harry Molenaar, here.
Najib said the identification process had to be done according to strict procedures, bearing in mind the need for evidence for possible prosecution.
"We can't avoid this painstaking process. This is both to meet the technical and legal requirements," he said adding that the whole process was expected "to take weeks or even months".
Forty-three Malaysians were among 298 passengers and crew aboard MH17 en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was believed to have been shot down in the region of Donetsk.
Najib also regretted that international investigators were still unable to have full access of the crash site.
"I'm angry because we want full access (but this is not the case).
Unfortunately it's a war zone, and you know in war zones there are many constraints which the parties involved must respect," he said.
Asked whether he would discuss the matter with Alexander Borodai, the commander of the pro-Russian separatists in the area where the jetliner went down, Najib said: "Not at the moment".
"But I'll be talking probably with Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko and reach out to Borodai," Najib said, noting that he was mindful of the sensitivities involved.
Meanwhile, in the condolence book, Najib penned a few lines expressing condolences on behalf of the government and the people of Malaysia to all the families in the Netherlands who had lost their loved ones in the MH17 tragedy.
"We feel for the families and our hearts go out to them," he said.
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