Four men are to go on trial in the Netherlands in the first criminal case over the murder of 298 people onboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot down over Ukraine in 2014.
The Boeing 777 went down amid a conflict in eastern Ukraine after Russian-backed rebels seized the area.
Investigators say they have proof the Buk missile system that shot it down came from a military base in Russia.
The four suspects are unlikely to take part in the trial.
Three of the men are Russian and one is from eastern Ukraine. Neither country extradites its citizens but one of the Russians will have a defence team in the courtroom and the court says it is also prepared to accept testimony from them by video link.
Russia has repeatedly denied involvement in the deadly attack on 17 July 2014. Citizens of 10 different countries died on flight MH17.
[Source:BBC]
