PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia: Relatives of people aboard Flight MH370 said Monday they hoped a long-awaited report into the plane’s disappearance might give them answers about one of the world’s most enduring aviation mysteries.
The family members were being given the official investigation team’s report in the morning at the Malaysian transport ministry and were set to be briefed by officials, and it was due to be released publicly in the afternoon.
The Malaysia Airlines jet vanished in March 2014 with 239 people — mostly from China — on board, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
No sign of it was found in a 120,000-square kilometer (46,000-square mile) Indian Ocean search zone and the Australian-led hunt, the largest in aviation history, was suspended in January last year.
US exploration firm Ocean Infinity resumed the hunt at the start of this year on a “no find, no fee” basis, using high-tech drones to scour the seabed. But that search was called off after failing to find anything.
Malaysia’s new government, which took power in May, has pledged total transparency and says the final report by the official safety investigation team — a 19-member body which includes international investigators — will be released unedited.
Arriving at the transport ministry to receive the report, Nurlaila Ngah, whose husband Wan Swaid Wan Ismail was an MH370 crew member, said she was hoping for a “solid answer” about what happened that could give relatives some closure.
“In the airline industry, tragedies happen but there are clues as to what could have happened,” she told AFP. “It makes no sense if they (the investigators) say there are no hints as to what could have happened.”
But Calvin Shim, whose wife was a stewardess on the flight, was skeptical the report would tell families anything new after more than four years of fruitless searching.
“I do not expect any fresh revelations from this report,” he said. “The black box has not been found. The plane wreckage has not been found.”
He said however he hoped the government would try to find new clues and consider resuming the search.
Only three confirmed fragments of MH370 have been found, all of them on western Indian Ocean shores, including a two-meter wing part known as a flaperon.
There have been a host of theories about why the plane disappeared, ranging from an accident to a hijacking or even a terror plot.
MH370 families hope for answers from official report
MH370 families hope for answers from official report
- US exploration firm Ocean Infinity resumed the hunt at the start of this year on a “no find, no fee” basis, using high-tech drones
- “The black box has not been found. The plane wreckage has not been found”
Kremlin says Putin is mediating in Iran to normalize situation
- Putin had then been briefed by Pezeshkian in a separate call on what the Kremlin called Tehran’s “sustained efforts” to normalize the situation inside Iran
MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin is mediating in the Iran situation to quickly de-escalate tensions, the Kremlin said on Friday, after the Russian leader spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Moscow has condemned US threats of new military strikes after Iran acted against protests that broke out late last month.
Putin in his call with Netanyahu expressed Russia’s willingness to “continue its mediation efforts and to promote constructive dialogue with the participation of all interested states,” the Kremlin said, adding he had set out his ideas for boosting stability in the Middle East.
No further details were given on Putin’s mediation attempt.
Putin had then been briefed by Pezeshkian in a separate call on what the Kremlin called Tehran’s “sustained efforts” to normalize the situation inside Iran.
“It was noted that Russia and Iran unanimously and consistently support de-escalating
the tensions — both surrounding Iran and in the region as a whole — as soon as possible
and resolving any emerging issues through exclusively political and diplomatic means,” the Kremlin said.
Putin and Pezeshkian had confirmed their commitment to their countries’ strategic partnership and to implementing joint economic projects, the Kremlin added.
Separately, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which includes Russia, China, India, and Iran, among others, said it opposed external interference in Iran and blamed Western sanctions for creating conditions for unrest.
“Unilateral sanctions have had a significant negative impact on the economic stability of the state, led to a deterioration in people’s living conditions, and objectively limited the ability of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to implement measures to ensure the country’s socio-economic development,” the SCO said in a statement.
Protests erupted on Dec. 28 over soaring inflation in Iran, whose economy has been crippled by sanctions.
Asked what support Russia could provide to Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Russia is already providing assistance not only to Iran but also to the entire region, and to the cause of regional stability and peace. This is partly thanks to the president’s efforts to help de-escalate tensions.”
The US Treasury on Thursday announced new sanctions targeting Iranian officials, including Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council for National Security.
