Mother Admits Beating Mikaeel Kular To Death

Mikaeel Kular's mother has pleaded guilty to killing her three-year-old son, who she subjected to repeated assaults.

Rosdeep Adekoya had been accused of murder but admitted a reduced charge of culpable homicide at the High Court in Edinburgh.

She confessed to wrapping Mikaeel's body in a duvet cover, putting it in a suitcase and driving to Dunvegan Avenue in Kirkcaldy, where she hid the case under a bush in woodland behind a house.

The death of three-year-old Mikaeel Kular touched the community

Mikaeel's disappearance from his Edinburgh home in January sparked a huge search involving police officers, firefighters, mountain rescue teams and the coastguard, as well as members of the public.

His body was eventually found 25 miles away in woodland in Kirkcaldy, Fife.

Adekoya's internet searches included "Get rid of bruises"

Adekoya had called 999 to report her son missing to police, telling officers he got out of bed and climbed on a stool to unlock the front door of his home.

But in court she admitted to beating her son to death, repeatedly punching him and causing his body to hit against a hard object or inflicting blunt injuries on his head and body between January 12 and 15.

She also pleaded guilty to attempting to defeat the ends of justice by pretending to police he had gone missing.

Advocate depute Alex Prentice told the court: "The basis for the plea tendered being accepted is that the Crown accepts that the accused had no intention to kill Mikaeel and that the assault perpetrated upon him, although severe, fell short of the wicked recklessness required for murder."

Explaining the charge of culpable homicide, Sky's James Matthews, at the High Court in Edinburgh, said: "Basically she beat up her son causing his death but she didn't mean to kill him, and that's been accepted by the prosecution authorities."

The toddler's body was found in woodland behind a property in Kirkcaldy

He said after killing Mikaeel, Adekoya had done the school-run taking her four other children to school before continuing on to dump his body behind a property where her sister was staying.

"Her concocted story unravelled under questioning by police, and it was when they spotted inconsistencies in her story that she broke down and told them where Mikaeel's body was," Matthews added.

The car used by Adekoya to dump Mikaeel's body after the school-run

Adekoya's internet history showed searches including "I find it hard to love my son", "I love all of my children except one", "Why am I so aggressive with my son" and "Get rid of bruises".

The court heard Mikaeel died on the night of Tuesday, January 14, from injuries inflicted the previous Sunday.

Hundreds of members of the public joined the search for the youngster

His mother "lost her temper" when he was repeatedly sick following a trip to a Nando's restaurant at the city's Fountain Park.

Mikaeel had more than 40 separate injuries to his body, including bruises to his back, chin and cheek, trauma to the brain, haemorrhage in the spinal cord and injuries to his arms.

Mr Prentice said: "If medical assistance had been called for, death might not have resulted."

Sentence was deferred until August 25 at the High Court in Edinburgh.

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Tulisa Found Guilty Of Assaulting Blogger

Tulisa Contostavlos has been found guilty of assaulting a celebrity blogger at V Festival in Essex.

The N-Dubz star hit Savvas Morgan during a row in the VIP area at the site in Chelmsford last August.

She was found guilty by a judge at Stratford Magistrates' Court in east London and ordered to pay a total of £3,020.

Contostavlos shook her head and smiled in disbelief as the guilty verdict was read out.

Savvas Morgan rowed with Contostavlos at V Festival

She appeared to mutter "this is bulls**t" as she walked out of the courtroom.

The 26-year-old has vowed to launch an appeal against her conviction and said she was "outraged at the decision".

"There are a number of high-profile witnesses who were there and know what happened. I urge them to come forward and tell the truth at the appeal," she said outside the court.

"I am determined to clear my name as I have already done once this week. I repeat - I did not assault Vas J Morgan. I am innocent."

Contostavlos apparently held a grudge against her victim

District Judge Angus Hamilton said he was "quite sure" based on the evidence that "Ms Contostavlos did strike Mr Morgan in the face during an argument and that that blow caused minor bruising and swelling".

He said Contostavlos acted in a "confrontational" manner when she turned towards her victim, who she reportedly held a grudge against after he included a link to her sex tape on his blog.

"Her decision to seek to deal with Mr Morgan herself strikes me as aggressive and confrontational," the judge said.

He went on to say that he had a "number of points of concern" about her evidence during the trial.

He found that she "changed her account" of what she did with her hands during the confrontation. At one point she claimed she raised them in a defensive gesture but later said they remained by her sides, he said.

Her assistant, Gareth Varey, was cleared of using threatening behaviour during the incident.

Jeremy Dein QC, barrister for Contostavlos, said in mitigation that his client was provoked by the actions of her victim in relation to the sex tape.

He told the court: "Mr Morgan played a significant part in humiliating and debasing Ms Contostavlos' reputation, clearly for financial gain."

Contostavlos must pay a £2,700 contribution towards the cost of the prosecution, a £200 fine, £100 compensation to Mr Morgan and a £20 victim surcharge.

Earlier this week, a drugs trial against Contostavlos collapsed at Southwark Crown Court after the judge said there were "strong grounds" to believe that undercover reporter Mazher Mahmood - known as the Fake Sheikh - had lied in the witness box.

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Plane Survivor Crawls Out Of Fiery Wreckage

A woman escaped from the fiery wreckage of the TransAsia Airways plane by clambering through a hole in the fuselage - and then phoned her father to come and pick her up.

Hung Yu-ting was one of only 10 survivors when the aircraft crashed into houses near a runway on Taiwan's Penghu islands on Wednesday.

"She called me on the phone to say the plane had crashed and exploded but that she had already crawled out and I should come right away to get her," said Hung Yu-ting's father, who lives a few hundred metres from the crash site.

"When I was halfway there the fire was still really big, but it was smaller when I arrived on the scene," Mr Hung told reporters.

The plane ploughed into houses while trying to land in bad weather

"There were two other injured outside and the first ambulance had already taken away three, including my daughter."

Hung Chang-ming helped rescuers put out the fire and dragged more people from the wrecked plane before later being reunited with his 34-year-old daughter.

She suffered burns to her arms, leg and back during her escape and is recovering in hospital.

Forty-eight people were killed when the twin propeller ATR-72, which had taken off from Taipei, crashed while trying to land in stormy conditions and low visibility.

Forty-eight people died in the incident on Taiwan's Penghu islands

The effects of a typhoon had cancelled around 200 flights earlier in the day, but aviation officials insisted conditions in the area were acceptable to fly.

Investigators are set to focus on a four-minute timeframe when visibility around Magong airport is said to have reduced by half.

Several children were among the dead, which included a family of six and a family of four.

Buddhist monks conduct a ritual at the crash site

TransAsia chairman Vincent Lin appeared at the funeral hall on Friday and said the crash was an "unpredictable tragedy".

He apologised, kneeled and bowed to the mother of one victim, who screamed back: "Give me back my son, he is only 27 years old.

"He is still young, but now he is lying there at the morgue. I want my son back."

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Four Palestinians Killed Amid Prayer Lockdown

Four Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank - two shot by Israeli troops and the other by a female settler.

Israeli soldiers shot dead Hashem Abu Marieh, 46, and 30-year-old Sultan Yusef in the Palestinian village of Beit Ummar, near Hebron, medics said.

In the second shooting, Israeli settlers fired on a group of Palestinians near the northern city of Nablus, killing 18-year-old Khaled Oudeh and wounding four others after they threw stones at their car, security officials said.

Israeli soldiers arrived at the scene and their fire killed a third man, 22-year-old Tayyib Oudeh, the officials added. 

A map showing the areas of conflict and violence

An Israeli army spokeswoman confirmed there had been "confrontations" between troops and Palestinians near Nablus "in which settlers were involved", but gave not further details on the Beit Ummar shooting.

The deaths came as Israeli riot police charged down skirmishes near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, as fears of more trouble in the area sparked a lockdown on Friday prayers.

Only men aged over-50 are being allowed into Al Aqsa mosque after a massive protest in the West Bank last night resulted in the deaths of two Palestinians.

Israeli security forces have been put on heightened alert and deployed in and around Jerusalem's Old City after Palestinians declared today a "day of rage" following the violent and deadly clashes.

Sky's David Bowden, in east Jerusalem, said: "Riot police charged down the road a short time ago towards a group of youths who were protesting, throwing rocks.

Friday prayers are being held at the Al Aqsa mosque

"The riot police fired baton rounds and they arrested at least one protester who was dragged away with his hands behind his back.

"A water cannon followed the police down, and actually they had set fire to a couple of massive tyres, and they used the water cannon to put that fire out.

"I don't want to over-egg this. It wasn't a great conflagration, but it gives you an idea of the tension here already."

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told Sky News: "Once we receive clear indications that there are going to be disturbances on the Temple Mount it is necessary for an implementation of age limits in and around the Old City.

"We are taking all of these measures in order to prevent people from being injured or possibly killed around this area."

At least 150 people were injured in the mass protest

Amid the growing tensions, US Secretary of State and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pressed for a ceasefire as the Palestinian death toll rose to 815.

Hamas attempted to attack Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv with three rockets - two of which were destroyed mid-air by the Israelis.

A pregnant woman was among this morning's casualties in Gaza following a fresh wave of Israeli airstrikes.

Surgeons managed to save the 23-year-old's unborn child, but a 12-year-old and 15-year-old were said to be among those killed in the strike on the southern city of Rafah, health officials said.

More than 140,000 people have fled the conflict, while some 33 Israeli soldiers have been killed, and three civilians have died in Israel from rocket fire.

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Passenger Plane Carrying 116 People Crashes

A passenger jet which vanished from radar over northern Mali in West Africa has crashed, says an Algerian aviation official.

Two French fighter jets are searching for the Air Algerie plane which was carrying 110 passengers and six crew.

The plane was travelling from Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou to the Algerian capital Algiers when it vanished around 50 minutes into the flight.

Missing Algeria Passenger Plane: Live Updates

The pilot asked for permission to change route because of a sand storm around 20 minutes into the flight, said Burkina Faso Transport Minister Jean Bertin Ouedrago.

He said the plane's passenger list included 51 French citizens.

Also on the jet were 27 Burkina Faso nationals, eight Lebanese, six Algerians, five Canadians, four Germans, two Luxemburg nationals, one Swiss, one Belgium, one Egyptian, one Ukrainian, one Nigerian, one Cameroonian and one Malian.

The six crew members were Spanish, according to the Spanish pilots' union.

A French army spokesman said: "Two Mirage 2000 jets based in Africa were dispatched to try to locate the Air Algerie plane.

"They will search an area from its last known location along its probable route."

Flight AH5017 is owned by Spanish private airline Swiftair and operated by Air Algerie.

The twin-engined MD-83 is 45 metres long and carries 168 people

Swiftair said the aircraft took off from Burkina Faso at 1.17am local time and was supposed to land in Algiers at 5.10am local time but never reached its destination.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-83 had been missing for hours before news of its disappearance was made public.

Ouagadougou is in a nearly straight line south of Algiers, separated by Mali where unrest continues in the north of the country.

Airlines had been warned not to fly over Mali in recent days, Sky News understands.

However, a senior French official said it is unlikely that fighters in Mali could shoot down a plane.

They are known to have shoulder-fired weapons which could not hit an aircraft travelling at a cruising altitude of some 33,000ft.

AH5017 took off from Ouagadougou airport in Mali. Pic: Sputniktilt

The plane was near Gao international airport in Mali when it dropped off radar.

Sky's Alistair Bunkall said there are reports in the Algerian media that the plane crashed after running out of fuel.

But given the plane was 50 minutes - or about 300 miles - into its four-hour journey that is unlikely to be a cause, he said.

"A source is telling me that air traffic control asked the aircraft to divert near the Algerian border because of bad weather and to avoid another aircraft," Bunkall said.

"If true, I assume it didn't collide with the other aircraft otherwise we'd have reports of a second missing plane."

Swiftair has a fleet of more than 30 planes flying in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

AH5017's disappearance comes less than six months after Algeria's worst air disaster in a decade.

Some 77 people were killed when a military transport plane carrying members of the Algerian armed forces and their relatives hit a mountain and crashed near the village of Ouled Gacem in the east of the country.

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Air Algerie Crash: Five Possible Theories

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

What could have happened to Air Algerie's flight from Ouagadougou to Algiers? Here are five possible scenarios.

1. Plane ran out of fuel - being reported by some Algerian media. In my opinion unlikely. At only 50 minutes into a four-hour flight, this would be a dramatic miscalculation.

2. Shot down by rebels. Possible, but still in the unlikely category. The Federal Aviation Administration issued this yesterday: "The US agency banned all flights into the territory and airspace of Mali saying the security situation remains fragile."

3. Hijacked. Air Algerie flights have been hijacked on at least six occasions I can find, but there have been no reports of demands being made before the plane crashed.

4. Weather. A source tells me that air traffic control asked the aircraft to divert near the Algerian border because of bad weather and to avoid another aircraft. It is now clear that there was a storm over Mali but I assume it did not collide with the other aircraft otherwise we would have reports of a second missing plane. 

5. CCTV reporting it came down in Niger. This would have meant a considerable diversion to the east.

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Undercover Police Spied On 17 Grieving Families

Seventeen families were spied on by undercover police officers who operated unchecked and by their own rules, a report has found.

The shadowy unit was said to have gone too far in investigating relatives of murder victims involved in family justice campaigns including those of Jean Charles de Menezes and Stephen Lawrence.

And it found officers on the Metropolitan Police's Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) routinely made illicit recordings of conversations and kept information they should not have had.

One reference in the secret police records even referred to a grieving relative planning to go to a funeral although "there was no intelligence to indicate that the funeral would have been anything other than a dignified event".

The family of Jean Charles de Menezes may sue

Derbyshire Chief Constable Mick Creedon, who published the report, said the unit operated outside of the control of management and it was "astonishing" the vast majority of commissioners and deputy commissioners knew nothing of its existence.

It said: "Over the 40 years that the unit existed, senior Metropolitan Police management of the day either knew nothing about the existence and activities of the unit or, when they did, they appeared to have allowed the SDS to exist in secret isolation in a manner that was complacent and possibly negligent."

Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee Keith Vaz said: "As we have discovered in our hearings, despite Operation Herne costing £3.5 million, involving at least 26 officers and taking almost two years, no-one has been prosecuted and no senior officer from the Met has appeared to have taken responsibility."

The report identified 17 family justice campaigns that had been infiltrated by officers in the course of their work between 1970 and 2005.

A police spy was placed in the Lawrence family camp

The police were in the process of informing the families.

Assistant Commissioner Martin Hewitt stopped short of an apology and instead said: "I regret enormously the distress that has been caused."

The family of Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes, who was shot dead by police in the aftermath of the 7/7 terror attack, are considering legal action.

The mother of student Ricky Reel, whose family was targeted by undercover officers after her son was killed, has called for a public inquiry after learning of the findings of the review.

Metropolitan Police: no apology but 'regret'

The 20-year-old died after a racist attack and the police investigations into his death were heavily criticised by his family after they failed to establish what had happened and ruled his death was probably an accident.

The SDS was set up to infiltrate protest groups but officers on the squad have come under fire for stealing the identities of 42 dead children to use as cover and for "tricking" women into sexual relations in order to carry out their work. It was disbanded in 2008.

A report on the case of the murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence earlier this year found the Metropolitan Police had placed a "spy" in the Lawrence family camp during the inquiry into the police handling of the investigation.

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Israeli Shell Strikes Gaza School: 15 Dead

Nine people have been killed after an Israeli shell struck a UN-run school in northern Gaza.

A UN official confirmed there were "multiple dead and injured" in the attack on a school in the city of Beit Hanun.

The facility was being used as a shelter by hundreds of Palestinians fleeing a major Israeli operation in the area.

At least 150 people were injured in the blast - the fourth time a UN facility has been hit during the start of the recent conflict.

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Check-In Staff Haunted By Memories Of MH17

A ground steward who checked passengers onto the doomed Malaysia Airlines plane has posted a moving tribute to them on Facebook.

Renuka Manisha Virangna Birbal wrote the message after the Boeing 777 was shot down over Ukraine on Thursday, killing all 298 passengers and crew on board.

In the note, which has been shared thousands of times, she describes grandmothers taking photos of their grandchildren, a newly married couple flying off on their honeymoon and a man who was about to start a new life in Malaysia.

She also mentioned a young girl with her mother, as well as colleagues from a ticket counter, boarding the flight at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport.

Hundreds of bouquets have been left at the airport to remember the victims

"A beautiful little girl held by her mother, her father behind them pushing the stroller," she wrote.

"She is beautiful - half Dutch, half Malaysian, with beautiful big eyes. She smiled kindly at me.

"Suddenly I see a familiar face. It is our colleague from the MH ticket counter.

"He proudly shows me his son, wife and daughter. With a big smile he waved, 'See you soon.'"

A book of condolence has been opened inside the terminal building

Ms Birbal was one of the last people to see the passengers before they boarded flight MH17.

She described children waving and smiling at her and remembered one asking her mother: "When do we see our luggage again?"

She ended the message with: "The last time I saw them, talked to them and wished them a pleasant flight ... (I saw) one last smile, one last salute, a happy face.

"Rest in peace, dear passengers and crew. On behalf of the ground handling agents of flight MH17."

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Rebels' MH17 Site 'Sabotage Plan' Intercepted

Rebels planned to sabotage the investigation into Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 by scattering parts of other planes at the crash site, according to Sky sources.

UK intelligence officials have intercepted communications between pro-Russian separatists discussing deliberate attempts to tamper with the scene of the disaster.

Evidence indicates rebels talked about removing victims' remains from the fields of Grabovo, where the plane was shot down.

Sky sources in Whitehall added that the rebels also considered sending the black boxes to Moscow.

Malaysian air crash investigators at the site in Grabovo

Sky's Defence Correspondent Alistair Bunkall said the sources claimed the separatists wanted to confuse the situation further for investigators. 

He said: "I think this will play into the fears that many people have that not all of the bodies will be returned, that parts of the plane have been tampered with in order to try and hide any evidence.

"It has been incredibly difficult for international monitors to gain access to the crash site.

"This is all a part of UK intelligence working with intelligence agencies around the world to try and build up a picture not only of what happened at the point of impact, but also what happened in the hours and days that followed on from that."

The news came as Ukraine said rebels had shot down two of its fighter jets.

A spokesman for the country's military operations said the aircraft were brought down near Savur Mogila in eastern Ukraine.

No information was given about those on board, but it is thought both planes were carrying up to two crew members each.

Wooden coffins are loaded onto an aircraft at Kharkiv Airport

Fierce fighting between Ukrainian forces and separatists has continued in the Donetsk region since the MH17 disaster.

The bodies of some of the victims have started being flown back to the Netherlands from the crash site.

Two military aircraft - one Dutch and the other Australian - left Kharkiv Airport for Eindhoven Airport this morning.

The rest are expected to be repatriated during the course of this week.

Some 200 bodies have been handed over by the rebels. However, 80 are still missing and are thought to still be among the flight debris at the crash site.

All 298 people on board were killed when jet was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

Kiev and Moscow have blamed each other for the air disaster.

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TransAsia Plane Crash Landing 'Kills 51'

A TransAsia Airlines plane has made an emergency landing in Taiwan killing 51 people and injuring seven.

The aircraft reportedly came down in the Penghu Islands off the western coast of Taiwan.

Authorities said the plane, carrying 58 people including four crew, crashed near the airport on the outlying Penghu island.

"Fifty-one people are feared dead and seven people injured," Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration Shen Chi told reporters, but the local fire chief put the death toll at 45. 

Taiwan media is reporting the plane was flying a domestic route.

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MH17 Victims' Bodies Arrive In The Netherlands

The bodies of some of the first victims recovered from downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 have returned to the Netherlands from the crash site in eastern Ukraine.

Two military aircraft - one Dutch and the other Australian - left Kharkiv Airport in northeastern Ukraine earlier carrying the bodies of 40 victims between them in wooden coffins.

They have now arrived at Eindhoven Airport in the Netherlands where they will be met by relatives, the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and members of the Dutch royal family.

Sky's Ian Woods, at Eindhoven Airport, said: "The coffins will be carried off the planes by military personnel and each one put in a hearse.

"Around 1,000 relatives will be watching from behind a screen, including members of two British families."

A national day of mourning has been declared in the Netherlands for the 298 people killed, 193 of whom were Dutch, and will include a silent march in Amsterdam this evening.

A minute's silence will be held before a motorcade takes the bodies to the Korporaal van Oudheusden military barracks in Hilversum, where the long process of identifying the remains, aided by a team of British police officers, begins.

The Dutch PM has warned it could take weeks or even months.

The bodies are the first of some 200 victims which are expected to be flown out of Ukraine during the course of this week.

It is thought more than 80 bodies still remain at the scene.

However, Australia's prime minister Tony Abbott has cast doubt over the numbers that have been recovered and handed over by pro-Russian separatists and warned it is unclear how many bodies may have arrived in Kharkiv - and been left behind.

"It's quite possible that many bodies are still out there in the open, in the European summer, subject to interference and subject to the ravages of heat and animals," he said.

Meanwhile, the black boxes from MH17 have now arrived in the UK, where they will be examined at the headquarters of the Air Accidents Investigation Branch in Farnborough, Hampshire.

Investigators say it will take 24 hours to download the data from each machine before sending it to the Dutch for analysis.

...More follows

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Russia Faces 'Hard-Hitting' Sanctions Over MH17

Russia Only Needs To Create Doubt Over MH17

Updated: 12:50pm UK, Tuesday 22 July 2014

By Katie Stallard, Moscow Correspondent

From a cavernous situation room inside the Russian Ministry of Defence, the Lieutenant-General set out Russia's version of events.

The briefing was carried live on Russian state TV and handed out on DVDs by Russia's ambassador to Malaysia.

They claim to have detected a Ukrainian military aircraft within 3-5km of the Malaysian Airliner on Thursday.

"The SU-25 fighter jet can gain an altitude of 10km, according to its specification," Lt Gen Kartopolov explained (which happens to be the exact altitude at which MH17 was flying).

"It's equipped with air-to-air R-60 missile that can hit a target at a distance up to 12km, up to 5km for sure.

"We would like to get an explanation as to why the military jet was flying along a civil aviation corridor at almost the same time and at the same level as a passenger plane."

They also claim to have detected an unusual increase in Ukrainian radar activity leading up to the incident, and that the airliner came down "within the operating zone" of Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile defences.

He showed satellite images of a Ukrainian base close to Donetsk, pointing out that its surface-to-air missile units were missing on the day of the crash.

He then appeared to claim that one of the units had moved into rebel-controlled territory on the morning of the crash.

Finally, Russia categorically denied supplying the rebels with Buk surface-to-air missile systems, or indeed any other weaponry.

Now, firstly, it's worth saying there is a propaganda war in both directions here, which has been going on for several months, and that both sides are pursuing interests beyond the immediate tragedy of MH17.

But the questions Russia presents "that Kiev must answer" raise a few questions themselves.

The SU-25 "fighter jet" Russia claims to have identified close to the airliner is a ground attack aircraft - according to its manufacturer its maximum service height, without weapons, is 7,000m - 3km short of MH17.

As Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer pointed out, it's also too slow: "They should have at least claimed it was an SU-27," he said.

And if the rebels don't have the Buk missile system, or indeed any other Russian-supplied weaponry - how did they target the dozen Ukrainian military aircraft they have previously boasted of shooting down?

This included an Antonov-26 transport aircraft, flying at an altitude of 6,500m last week.

It is possible of course that the rebels have acquired weapons from Ukrainian military bases, although the government in Kiev insists it can account for all of its missile systems.

And what exactly is the case Russia is setting out? Is it suggesting the Ukrainian SU-25 (despite its technical limitations) shot down the passenger jet in mid-air?

And why? The plane would seem to have been travelling in the wrong direction for Ukrainian forces to have perceived it as a hostile aircraft coming from Russia, and the rebels don't have an air force.

So are they seriously suggesting the Ukrainians deliberately moved their missiles on to rebel-held territory and shot the airliner down as part of some sort of nefarious plan to frame the rebels and turn world opinion against them?

But then Russia doesn't need to prove its case - all it needs is to create one, to insist that there are different versions of events, that there is credible claim and counter-claim.

In much the same manner as a criminal defence barrister, Russia doesn't have to demonstrate that its alleged client is innocent - just to establish enough doubt in the minds of the jury - in this case the international community - that they can't be completely sure.

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MH17 Crash Victims' Bodies Arrive At Station

Russia Only Needs To Create Doubt Over MH17

Updated: 12:50pm UK, Tuesday 22 July 2014

By Katie Stallard, Moscow Correspondent

From a cavernous situation room inside the Russian Ministry of Defence, the Lieutenant-General set out Russia's version of events.

The briefing was carried live on Russian state TV and handed out on DVDs by Russia's ambassador to Malaysia.

They claim to have detected a Ukrainian military aircraft within 3-5km of the Malaysian Airliner on Thursday.

"The SU-25 fighter jet can gain an altitude of 10km, according to its specification," Lt Gen Kartopolov explained (which happens to be the exact altitude at which MH17 was flying).

"It's equipped with air-to-air R-60 missile that can hit a target at a distance up to 12km, up to 5km for sure.

"We would like to get an explanation as to why the military jet was flying along a civil aviation corridor at almost the same time and at the same level as a passenger plane."

They also claim to have detected an unusual increase in Ukrainian radar activity leading up to the incident, and that the airliner came down "within the operating zone" of Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile defences.

He showed satellite images of a Ukrainian base close to Donetsk, pointing out that its surface-to-air missile units were missing on the day of the crash.

He then appeared to claim that one of the units had moved into rebel-controlled territory on the morning of the crash.

Finally, Russia categorically denied supplying the rebels with Buk surface-to-air missile systems, or indeed any other weaponry.

Now, firstly, it's worth saying there is a propaganda war in both directions here, which has been going on for several months, and that both sides are pursuing interests beyond the immediate tragedy of MH17.

But the questions Russia presents "that Kiev must answer" raise a few questions themselves.

The SU-25 "fighter jet" Russia claims to have identified close to the airliner is a ground attack aircraft - according to its manufacturer its maximum service height, without weapons, is 7,000m - 3km short of MH17.

As Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer pointed out, it's also too slow: "They should have at least claimed it was an SU-27," he said.

And if the rebels don't have the Buk missile system, or indeed any other Russian-supplied weaponry - how did they target the dozen Ukrainian military aircraft they have previously boasted of shooting down?

This included an Antonov-26 transport aircraft, flying at an altitude of 6,500m last week.

It is possible of course that the rebels have acquired weapons from Ukrainian military bases, although the government in Kiev insists it can account for all of its missile systems.

And what exactly is the case Russia is setting out? Is it suggesting the Ukrainian SU-25 (despite its technical limitations) shot down the passenger jet in mid-air?

And why? The plane would seem to have been travelling in the wrong direction for Ukrainian forces to have perceived it as a hostile aircraft coming from Russia, and the rebels don't have an air force.

So are they seriously suggesting the Ukrainians deliberately moved their missiles on to rebel-held territory and shot the airliner down as part of some sort of nefarious plan to frame the rebels and turn world opinion against them?

But then Russia doesn't need to prove its case - all it needs is to create one, to insist that there are different versions of events, that there is credible claim and counter-claim.

In much the same manner as a criminal defence barrister, Russia doesn't have to demonstrate that its alleged client is innocent - just to establish enough doubt in the minds of the jury - in this case the international community - that they can't be completely sure.

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MH17: Families And Futures 'Ruined' By Crash

Russia Only Needs To Create Doubt Over MH17

Updated: 12:50pm UK, Tuesday 22 July 2014

By Katie Stallard, Moscow Correspondent

From a cavernous situation room inside the Russian Ministry of Defence, the Lieutenant-General set out Russia's version of events.

The briefing was carried live on Russian state TV and handed out on DVDs by Russia's ambassador to Malaysia.

They claim to have detected a Ukrainian military aircraft within 3-5km of the Malaysian Airliner on Thursday.

"The SU-25 fighter jet can gain an altitude of 10km, according to its specification," Lt Gen Kartopolov explained (which happens to be the exact altitude at which MH17 was flying).

"It's equipped with air-to-air R-60 missile that can hit a target at a distance up to 12km, up to 5km for sure.

"We would like to get an explanation as to why the military jet was flying along a civil aviation corridor at almost the same time and at the same level as a passenger plane."

They also claim to have detected an unusual increase in Ukrainian radar activity leading up to the incident, and that the airliner came down "within the operating zone" of Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile defences.

He showed satellite images of a Ukrainian base close to Donetsk, pointing out that its surface-to-air missile units were missing on the day of the crash.

He then appeared to claim that one of the units had moved into rebel-controlled territory on the morning of the crash.

Finally, Russia categorically denied supplying the rebels with Buk surface-to-air missile systems, or indeed any other weaponry.

Now, firstly, it's worth saying there is a propaganda war in both directions here, which has been going on for several months, and that both sides are pursuing interests beyond the immediate tragedy of MH17.

But the questions Russia presents "that Kiev must answer" raise a few questions themselves.

The SU-25 "fighter jet" Russia claims to have identified close to the airliner is a ground attack aircraft - according to its manufacturer its maximum service height, without weapons, is 7,000m - 3km short of MH17.

As Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer pointed out, it's also too slow: "They should have at least claimed it was an SU-27," he said.

And if the rebels don't have the Buk missile system, or indeed any other Russian-supplied weaponry - how did they target the dozen Ukrainian military aircraft they have previously boasted of shooting down?

This included an Antonov-26 transport aircraft, flying at an altitude of 6,500m last week.

It is possible of course that the rebels have acquired weapons from Ukrainian military bases, although the government in Kiev insists it can account for all of its missile systems.

And what exactly is the case Russia is setting out? Is it suggesting the Ukrainian SU-25 (despite its technical limitations) shot down the passenger jet in mid-air?

And why? The plane would seem to have been travelling in the wrong direction for Ukrainian forces to have perceived it as a hostile aircraft coming from Russia, and the rebels don't have an air force.

So are they seriously suggesting the Ukrainians deliberately moved their missiles on to rebel-held territory and shot the airliner down as part of some sort of nefarious plan to frame the rebels and turn world opinion against them?

But then Russia doesn't need to prove its case - all it needs is to create one, to insist that there are different versions of events, that there is credible claim and counter-claim.

In much the same manner as a criminal defence barrister, Russia doesn't have to demonstrate that its alleged client is innocent - just to establish enough doubt in the minds of the jury - in this case the international community - that they can't be completely sure.

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Pregnant Woman And Child Among Airstrike Dead

A child and three women, one of them pregnant, have been killed in airstrikes on Gaza say medics, as the Israeli military confirmed one of its soldiers was missing, presumed dead.

The latest deaths came as diplomatic efforts were stepped up aimed at securing a ceasefire in the bloody conflict.

The four civilians died in two separate Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.  

A Palestinian medic inspects damage at a hospital in Gaza

The missing Israeli soldier was one of seven personnel who had been inside an armoured vehicle hit by an anti-tank missile on Sunday.

The military has only been able to identify six of the dead, but a spokesman denied any possibility the unaccounted for soldier was still alive.

It follows claims by Hamas it had captured a soldier, which was denied at the time by Israel's ambassador to the UN.

Israel is continuing its offensive to stop attacks by Hamas militants

Militants displayed a photo ID and army serial number raising fears they had seized his remains, which could be used to exchange for prisoners.

It came as the number killed in the 15-day conflict passed 560 people, including nearly 100 children.

Palestinians killed since the assault began on July 8 has reached 539, while the number of Israeli dead rose to 29 people.

The continued violence comes as diplomatic efforts intensify in Cairo, where US Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting Egyptian leaders including the country's president Abdel Fattah al Sisi.

US Secretary of State John Kerry is in Cairo to try and broker a ceasefire

As Mr Kerry arrived in Cairo, the US confirmed it would provide $47m (£27m) in humanitarian aid for Gaza.

"We will work to see if there is some way to not only arrive at a ceasefire of some kind, but to get to a discussion about the underlying issues," Mr Kerry said at the start of a meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Monday.

"Nothing will be resolved by any ceasefire, temporary or long, without really getting to those issues at some point, and that's what we need to do."

The funeral of an Israeli soldier near Tel Aviv

Mr Ban is scheduled to fly to Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and also to meet Palestinian officials in the West Bank.

But Israel has signalled it is not willing to reach a truce before it knocks out militant infrastructure in Gaza, including networks of tunnels along the Gaza frontier.

"This is not the time to talk of a ceasefire," Israel's communications minister Gilad Erdan said.

The bombardment of Gaza has led to an exodus of more than 100,000 civilians

"We must complete the mission, and the mission cannot end until the threat of the tunnels is removed."

Israel's aerial bombardment has so far resulted in an exodus of more than 100,000 Palestinian civilians, according to the United Nations.

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'Fake Sheikh' Suspended As Tulisa Trial Collapses

An undercover reporter dubbed the "fake sheikh" has been "suspended pending an immediate internal investigation" following the collapse of the Tulisa Contostavlos drugs trial.

The former N-Dubz singer, 26, was accused of brokering a cocaine deal for Mazher Mahmood but the trial has been thrown out after the judge told the jury there were "strong grounds to believe" that Mr Mahmood had "lied".

Reading a statement outside Southwark Crown Court, Ms Contostavlos said the whole case had been a "horrific and disgusting entrapment" by Mr Mahmood and The Sun on Sunday newspaper.

"Mahmood has now been exposed by my lawyers openly lying to the judge and jury. These lies were told to stop crucial evidence going before the jury, " she said.

Ms Contostavlos claims Mr Mahmood's driver Alan Smith had been pressurised into changing his statement to strengthen Mr Mahmood's evidence.

Mr Smith originally suggested he had heard the star talking disapprovingly about drugs but "changed his mind" after a conversation with the undercover reporter, the court was told.

During a pre-trial hearing, Mr Mahmood was asked: "Did you subsequently ask or find out, discuss with Mr Smith anything that was said in the car?"

He replied: "No."

Michael Coombs, also known as Mike GLC, walks free

Asked if at any stage he discussed Ms Contostavlos saying she "disapproved" of drugs, he also said no.

But the judge said he gave answers which were "entirely inconsistent" when he gave evidence about the same topic at the trial last week.

It can now be reported that, before the trial began, defence counsel argued that the case should be "stayed" - meaning thrown out - but their application was turned down.

In her statement Ms Contostavlos denied ever having dealt or taken cocaine and said she was targeted by the reporter when things were going badly for her.

Ms Contostavlos has urged the police to launch an investigation and said "this type of entrapment should not be allowed to happen to anyone", adding that her life had been ruined for a year.

A Sun spokesman said: "We are very disappointed with this outcome, but do believe the original investigation was conducted within the bounds of the law and the industry's Code. This was demonstrated by the CPS decision to prosecute.

"The Sun, of course, takes the judge's remarks very seriously. Mr Mahmood has been suspended pending an immediate internal investigation."

Explaining his decision to halt the case to the jury, the Judge Alistair McCreath said: "Occasionally - very rarely - circumstances may arise in which a court has to say that, whatever apparent merits a prosecution may have, the court cannot allow the prosecution case to be taken forward to trial."

He said the situation arose from a "fundamental principle" that the court "cannot allow itself to be party to improper conduct".

The Metropolitan Police said it is aware of the judge's decision and will "continue to liaise with the CPS should further work be required".

Earlier Ms Contostavlos appeared ecstatic, punching the air as she left the dock before crying as she hugged supporters including her PA, Gareth Varey, shortly after the case against her was thrown out.

Mike GLC - whose real name is Michael Coombs - pleaded guilty before the start of the trial to supplying half an ounce (13.9g) of cocaine but he also walked free after judge said the case cannot proceed against him.

The 36-year-old also wept as he hugged defence barrister Jeremy Dein QC.

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MH17: Warplane 'Flew Near Doomed Airliner'

A Ukrainian military plane flew within three to five km of flight MH17 just before the crash, the Russian Defence Ministry has claimed.

Moscow also denied supplying pro-Russian rebels with BUK missile systems or any other weapons.

It said it detected the Ukrainian warplane on radar and noticed an increase in radar activity just before the Malaysian Airlines plane carrying 298 people was destroyed.

The claims came after Ukraine's Prime Minister said Vladimir Putin is "on the side of the devil" as he reiterated Kiev's view that Russia had a clear role in shooting down the airliner.

Arseniy Yatsenyuk said the Boeing 777 was probably brought down by a BUK-M1 missile launcher.

"This system could not be operated by drunk pro-Russian terrorists. There were professional people," he told a news conference.

He also said Kiev is willing to hand over the probe into the atrocity to its Western partners.

In the Netherlands, Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima are meeting relatives of the 193 Dutch people who died on the plane.

The pair have been criticised for not attending memorial services for the victims on Sunday. Their aides are refusing to say what they were doing instead.

Earlier, the Russian President vowed to "do everything to ensure the security and safety" of experts investigating the disaster.

Mr Putin said "all people" in Ukraine are responsible for the tragedy.

"No one has the right to use this tragedy for any kind of vested interest in the political sense. Such incidents should unite people rather than separate them," he said.

Mr Putin says experts investigating the disaster should be protected

"We need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site."

However, Mr Yatsenyuk said: "I do not expect anything from the Russian government ... Putin should understand that it's enough already. This is not a conflict between Ukraine and Russia. It is an international conflict."

He added: "Russia is on the dark side, on the side of the devil."

US Secretary of State John Kerry said intelligence assessments had provided overwhelming evidence of Russian complicity in the downing of MH17.

Mr Kerry also demanded Russia take responsibility for the actions of pro-Moscow rebels in Eastern Ukraine, branding their mishandling of victims' bodies as "grotesque".

Ukrainian government investigators say 272 of the 298 bodies have now been found scattered over fields at Grabovo in the Donetsk region.

They said two trains carrying 251 bodies are stuck in the town of Torez because "terrorists are blocking its exit".

Mr Putin has promised Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte he will help retrieve bodies and black boxes from the crash site.

However, Mary Dejevsky, a Russian and EU analyst, told Sky News that Mr Putin controls rebels in the area "far less than is commonly believed outside Russia".

She said nobody controls the area which is "one of the reasons why things are so desperate there".

British Prime Minister David Cameron said tougher sanctions may soon be imposed on Russia.

Trains carrying bodies are being blocked by rebels, says Kiev

He said he had spoken to Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande and there is "strong co-operation" within the EU for action.

UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond is due to chair an emergency Cobra committee meeting on the crisis at 4.30pm today.

The UN Security Council will today vote on a resolution to condemn the downing of the aircraft.

The resolution, drafted by Australia, demands that those responsible for bringing the plane down will be held accountable, and that armed groups do not compromise the integrity of the crash site.

More follows...

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MH17: 'Bloody Guerrillas' Hold Train Of Bodies

Trains containing bodies from the MH17 crash site are being blocked by "terrorists", the Ukrainian government has said.

Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said: "We sent two trains, four carts, which right now are in Torez City.

"These bloody guerrillas do not allow the train to leave the area."

The trains are reportedly surrounded by 50 insurgents - but Dutch forensic teams say they have been promised the wagons will be released later on Monday so they can "do their work".

Pro-Russian rebels guards a train carrying crash victims' bodies

There are conflicting reports about whether the refrigeration systems on the trains are working.

As Russia and Ukraine continue to trade accusations over the cause of the Malaysia Airlines crash, rescuers have found 272 of the 298 victims - as well as 66 fragments of bodies - in the area where the plane came down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday.

There are fears some of the bodies were incinerated without a trace during the crash.

Michael Bociurkiw, a spokesman for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), said: "We're looking at the field where the engines have come down.

"This was the area which was exposed to the most intense heat. We do not see any bodies here. It appears that some have been vaporised."

The have also been accusations that bodies were removed by rebels.

Lyubov Kudryavets, a worker at the Torez morgue, said that on the evening the plane went down, a resident brought in the bloodied body of a child aged seven or eight. On Saturday militiamen came to take it away, she said.

"They began to question me: 'Where are the fragments of rocket? Where are the fragments from the plane?'" Ms Kudryavets said.

Investigators and rebels cover their faces while inspecting the wagons

The blocking of the trains comes despite comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin that "we need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site".

Ukraine is set to hand control of the crash investigation to Western partners, with the Netherlands, which lost 192 citizens, taking a lead.

A Joint International Investigation Team has been established and includes experts from Malaysia, Britain, Germany and the US.

However, the OSCE is the only official body allowed access to the crash site so far.

Smoke rises from Donetsk railway station amid clashes

Elsewhere, Ukraine's military has tried to break into Donetsk - which was taken by rebels in April - in the first significant outbreak of violence since the crash.

Fighting broke out near the city's railway station and airport, with reports of shelling. 

Health officials reported four people dead.

Ukraine's military denied responsibility for any explosions in the country's second city.

"There is work on clearing approaches to the city, on destroying checkpoints of the terrorists. If there are explosions in the middle of the city, then it is not Ukrainian soldiers," said Andriy Lysenko.

"We have strict orders not to use air strikes and artillery in the city. If there is fighting in the city, we have information that there is a small self-organised group who are fighting with the terrorists." 

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Israeli Tank Shells 'Hit Hospital, Killing Four'

Four people have been killed and a further 60 injured after Israeli tank shells hit a hospital in central Gaza, according to Palestinian medics.

Thirty of those wounded in the attack were reportedly medical staff.

Health official Ashraf al Kidra said 12 shells hit the intensive care unit, surgery department and administration building at the al Aqsa hospital in the town of Deir el-Balah.

A Palestinian man holds a child while fleeing the Shaja'iya district

Footage on Hamas' al Aqsa TV station showed chaotic scenes at the facility.

Fayez Zidane, a doctor at the hospital, told the station: "There is still shelling at the hospital."

Earlier, the Israeli army claimed it killed more than 10 Hamas militants who entered Israel via cross-border tunnels.

Officials said 35,000 civilians fled the fighting on Sunday

Grainy video released by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) showed what appeared to be Hamas gunmen in a fire fight with Israeli forces before they were hit by an air-strike.

The film showed several armed men lying in the grass near what Israel claimed was the exit to the tunnel on the Israeli side.

After exchanging fire the men appear to retreat before they're hit by what Israel claimed was an airstrike. There was no way of verifying the video.

Israeli soldiers mourn during the funeral of colleague Bnaya Rubel in Holon

The attack came as the UN Security Council called for an "immediate ceasefire" and Israel continued its air assault on the Gaza Strip this morning, killing 28 members of a single family near the enclave's southern border with Egypt, according to medics.

One of the tunnels came out just one kilometre (half a mile) from the southern Israeli town of Sderot, the IDF said.

Military radio claimed the "second terrorist squad" tried to approach Niram kibbutz, close to Gaza's northeastern tip, where they engaged in gunfire with Israeli soldiers.

Rubel, 20, was killed in Gaza on Saturday during Operation Protective Edge

Several soldiers were hurt, the radio report said, without giving further details.

Hamas' armed wing the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades claimed it had carried out "an operation behind enemy lines in response to the massacre in Shejaiya [Shaja'iya]".

Meanwhile, several explosions could be heard and clouds of black smoke rose over Gaza City's Shaja'iya and Zeitoun neighbourhoods this morning.

Israel's continued aerial bombardment has resulted in an exodus of some 35,000 civilians, according to officials.

The wife and children of an Israeli soldier mourn during his funeral

People fleeing Israeli shelling in Shaja'iya at the weekend described it as a "massacre", with many women and children among the dead.

The Israeli army said it had given civilians two days warning to leave the area.

Meanwhile, Israel's UN ambassador Ron Prosor denied claims by Hamas that an Israeli soldier had been abducted.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon held talks with regional leaders and called on Israel to exercise "maximum restraint and do far more to protect civilians".

Pro-Israel supporters rallied at Times Square, New York at the weekend

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas described the situation in Gaza as "intolerable" and the Israeli attacks a "crime against humanity".

The Israeli government has claimed Hama is hiding behind the civilian population.

Spokesman Naftali Bennet said: "What Hamas is doing is effectively self genocide.

"They're, in a cowardly and cynical fashion, placing their women and children as shields, killing them, then coming to Sky News and other outlets and saying 'Israel is killing us'."

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Rebels Load MH17 Crash Bodies Onto Trains

Armed pro-Russian separatists have reportedly forced emergency workers to hand over all the bodies recovered from the Malaysia Airlines crash site.

International monitors and Ukrainian officials said victims' remains were taken away and loaded onto refrigerator wagons on trains at Torez station which were said to be headed for rebel-held Donetsk later.

Kiev's emergency officials said 196 bodies had been recovered so far, as separatists said the jet's two black box voice and data recorders had been found and taken to the eastern Ukrainian city where they would be handed over to the international aviation authority.

Monitors examine the bodies loaded onto a refrigerator wagon on a train

It comes as footage emerged showing evidence that one flight recorder had been recovered at the scene, two days ago.

In addition, Ukrainian security services released audio recordings of what they claimed were rebels talking about trying to hide the black boxes at Moscow's request.

World leaders have piled pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the armed Moscow-backed rebels from preventing investigators from fully accessing the MH17 crash site.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said Europe and the West must "fundamentally change our approach" unless Mr Putin altered his stance.

International monitors and journalists are confronted by armed separatists

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond accused Russia of "dragging its heels" on Sky's Murnaghan programme and said the country risked becoming a "pariah" state.

The prospect of further sanctions against Russia was raised as public anger and concerns grow over claims of looting and evidence being tampered with.

The US has condemned the lack of security at the scene as an "affront to all those who lost loved ones and to the dignity the victims deserve", while Malaysia has attacked the failure to preserve evidence as a "betrayal of the lives lost".

The Ukraine government has accused pro-Russian separatists of removing bodies from the crash scene and debris, and attempting to destroy evidence.

A message left among floral tributes outside the Dutch Embassy in Kiev

Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said the government was "angry" and "furious" over allegations bodies were being dragged around the site.

Sky presenter Colin Brazier, at the crash scene, said: "I've been walking around, coming across body parts all the time, many of them charred beyond recognition.

"Men, women and children indeterminate, frankly, you can't tell. Very often you are looking at charred spines, that's all that's left.

"There are flies. It is hot. There are stretchers lying by the roadside. They have not been used because many of the bodies were dismembered by the forces of the impact.

A still showing evidence that a flight recorder was found, two days ago

"It is a truly macabre, horrific situation. There is a degree of anarchy and lawlessness.

"You feel the need for an overarching body to get a grip and sort this dreadful situation out."

All 298 passengers including 10 Britons and 80 children were killed when flight MH17 was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

Kiev and Moscow have blamed each other for the air disaster.

Malaysia Airlines earlier announced it is retiring the flight number of the MH17 Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur route and replacing it with MH19.

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Newcastle Fans Fund Gets Thousands From Rivals

Malaysia Airlines Defends War Zone Flight Path

Updated: 4:48pm UK, Saturday 19 July 2014

A Malaysia Airlines official has defended the company's decision to fly over eastern Ukraine after flight MH17 was brought down.

Hugh Dunleavy, commercial director for the airline, said there had been no incidents involving civilian aircraft using the flight path and Malaysia Airlines had been using it "for quite some time".

However, at least three Ukrainian military aircraft were hit by missiles fired by pro-Russian separatists operating in the region in the week before MH17 was shot out of the sky, killing 298 people. Of the victims, 189 are Dutch.

Mr Dunleavy told Sky News: "Now there's been an incident like this, everyone is looking back saying 'you should have done something different'.

"But at the time we were flying, along with many other airlines on that flight path, there had been no incidents involving civilian aircraft.

"These are routes that are traditionally accepted on a day-by-day basis by the air traffic control authorities so they also consider them safe to fly.

"This was something totally extraordinary, it could just as easily have been the aircraft ahead of Malaysia Airlines or the aircraft behind that was hit."

Mr Dunleavy added the airline would now be using an alternative flight path around Ukraine and they have stopped calling the route MH17 out of respect for the victims. It will now be called MH19.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation, a UN agency and other aviation authorities recently issued a "notice to airmen" (NOTAM) putting the eastern edge of Ukrainian airspace off limits up to 32,000 feet because of the conflict.

But MH17 was flying at 33,000 feet when it was hit by a missile fired from what experts believe was a Buk launcher.

Ukraine has now closed all airspace in the east. 

Ismail Nasaruddin, president of the Malaysian Flight Attendant Union, said some crew members were too distraught to work following the tragedy.

He said: "We have lost 21 crew members in a very short time period. This is not something we like to see.

"We are affected, the crew members are demoralised by the essence of this tragic incident.

"What we are looking at now is probably an event that Malaysia crew members have never experienced before."

Daniel Holland, a military aviation expert, told Sky News airspace above war zones should be sealed off to commercial aircraft.

He said: "When a war zone occurs, everything from ground level up until realistically the level of space needs to be sealed off to any and all commercial traffic just to avoid something like this happening where a plane accidentally wanders over a battle ground.

"You've got that probability that an accidental misfire could occur and strike a civilian target without any real rhyme or reason, other than it being in the wrong place at the wrong time."

On Tuesday, Polish blogger Michael Dembinski suggested flying over eastern Ukraine was "worrying".

He wrote: "Take a look at eastern Ukraine and you'll see a procession of civilian aircraft flying along an air corridor between Luhansk, Donetsk, Horlivka, Kramatorsk - places where battles are raging and people are being killed.

"Yet blithely oblivious to what's happening on the ground, some of the world's largest civilian airliners are criss-crossing the area at 38,000ft."

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Dutch Mother: 'Mr Putin, Send My Children Home'

A mother left devastated by the MH17 plane crash has appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin "to send my children home".

Silene Fredriksz spoke as many left flowers at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport to remember the 193 Dutch citizens killed when the Malaysian jet was downed by a missile over Eastern Ukraine.

Anger is growing in the Netherlands that bodies have not yet been repatriated and their loved ones are apparently being denied dignity in death.

Ms Fredriksz held up a photo of her son Bryce, 23, and his 20-year-old girlfriend Daisy as she pleaded for the return of their bodies.

The Fredriksz family were left distraught by the tragedy in Ukraine

"Twenty-three and 20 years old!" she said. "They're lying there on the floor somewhere. I don't know where they are.

"I want to arrange their funeral. I can't. I don't know where they are. I want them back. I want my children back."

Clenching their picture, she added: "Look at those people. How beautiful. They have to come back.

"Mr Putin - send my children home. Send them home. Please!" 

Across the Netherlands, memorial services are being held as families and communities try to come to terms with the loss of loved ones.

Anger is growing over Russia's suspected involvement in the crash

More than half the 298 people killed on the plane were Dutch, with six members from the same family from Neerkant, a small village in Noord-Brabant province.

The initial Dutch response to the jet horror was one of muted sadness.

But with reports from the crash site suggesting pro-Russian separatists tampered with evidence and removed some of the bodies, the mood has turned to anger.

Rebels are being urged to allow unrestricted access to the crash site

Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans told Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko on Saturday that his country was "angry" and "furious" by reports of bodies being dragged around the site.

Many Dutch are pointing the finger of blame at Russia, either for its suspected support of the rebels or perhaps for firing the missile itself.

International pressure is growing on Russia for it to urge rebels in Ukraine to allow observers unrestricted access to the crash site.

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron and his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte spoke on Saturday and said the European Union will have to "reconsider its approach to Russia in light of evidence that pro-Russian separatists brought down the plane."

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