MH17 final report to be disclosed on Oct. 13

Picture taken on Sept. 16, 2015 shows debris from the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 collected by local residents in the village of Rossipne, in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine. The final report on the cause of the MH17 crash will be made public on Oct. 13. (Xinhua/Alexander Ermochenko)

THE HAGUE, Aug. 27-- The final report on the cause of the MH17 crash will be made public on Oct. 13, the Dutch Safety Board (DSB) announced on Thursday.

Prior to the official publication of the report, the relatives will be informed about the conclusions of the investigation during a closed information meeting.

On Sept. 9 last year the DSB already issued its first preliminary report, stating the crash had an external cause, probably as the result of structural damage caused by a large number of high-energy objects that penetrated the aircraft from outside.

Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine on July 17 last year on its way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. All 298 people on board died, of which 296 have been identified yet.

The Dutch Safety Board leads the investigation on the cause of the crash, while the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), led by the Dutch national police and prosecutor, heads the criminal investigation.

On Aug. 11 this year the DSB and the Dutch national public prosecutor jointly announced that seven parts from a possible Buk surface-air-missile system were found in the disaster area of the MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine. The parts, which have been found during a previous recovery mission in eastern Ukraine, were secured for investigation.

Next month the relatives of the victims will receive an invitation to an information session on the final report containing details of the location, the time and how they can register. At a later date, the Dutch Safety Board will release further information about the location and the way in which the report will be made available to the public and media on Oct. 13.