MUAR: Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday described the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine on Thursday as a form of unforgiven crime.
He said the world community should ensure that those responsible for the incident, that claimed the lives of the 298 innocent passengers and crew of the flight, would be brought to justice without excuse.
“It (downing of MH17) is an unforgiven crime, it kills innocent people,” he said at the Iftar and Khatam Al-Quran event at Kampung Paya Panjang Mosque, Pagoh, here today.
At the event, Muhyiddin also joined the congregation for Yasin and Tahlil recitation for one of the passengers of the ill-fated flight, Mohd Ali Salim, who hailed from Kampung Jayor here.
Mohd Ali, 30, who was pursuing his doctorate degree at the Erasmus Universitiet in Rotterdam, Netherlands, was supposed to come home for Aidilfitri.
The MAS flight, MH17, was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it went down in Ukraine. It was carrying 298 people – 283 passengers and 15 crew.
Ukrainian authorities believe that the Boeing 777 was shot down.
MH17 had left Amsterdam at 12.15 pm (Netherlands time) Thursday and was to have arrived in Kuala Lumpur at 6.10 am (Malaysian time) Friday.
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin said another major crime was being committed by Israel against the Palestinians in Gaza.
He said the rocket attacks and land invasion by the Zionist regime had caused mass destruction and killed many innocent people, including women and children.
“The world community must take immediate action to stop Israeli brutality against the Palestinians,” he said. — Bernama