Russia refused Dutch request to hand over MH17 suspect

Volodymyr Tsemakh, suspected of involvement in the downing of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 plane in 2014, reacts inside a defendants' cage during a court hearing in Kiev, Ukraine September 5, 2019. - Reuters filepic

AMSTERDAM: Russia has refused a Dutch request to hand over a suspect in the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, in violation of European law, prosecutors said on Monday.

Volodymyr Tsemakh, a Ukrainian national, had been identified as a suspect by the Netherlands, which is leading an investigation into the disaster on July 17, 2014 which killed all 298 people onboard. Two-thirds of the passengers were Dutch.