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Ukrainian special forces capture separatist commander suspected in Malaysia Airlines flight shootdown
Ukrainian special operations forces reportedly went behind enemy lines to arrest a former commander of pro-Russian separatists who is suspected of being involved in the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. Ukrainian forces captured Vladimir Tsemach June 27 at his apartment in Snizhne, a city in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic in eastern Ukraine. Tsemach, 58, is believed to have been the commander of a Russian-backed air defense unit when MH17 was shot down on July 17, 2014. The crash left 283 passengers and 15 crew members dead. A majority of the passengers on the flight, which left Amsterdam for Kuala Lumpur, were Dutch. Tsemach has reportedly been charged with “creating a terrorist group or a terrorist organization.” He is in Kiev awaiting trial, according to the BBC. If found guilty, he will face 8 to 15 years in prison.
The shootdown of MH17 was one of the most dramatic flashpoints of the conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed rebels in the eastern provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, jointly referred to as the Donbass region. Rebels are believed to have shot down the aircraft with a Buk surface-to-air missile that originated from Russia’s 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade. Investigators found evidence last month that Russia supplied the missile to the rebels. U.S. intelligence confirmed that Russia “created conditions” allowing for the downing but stopped short of directly blaming the country, saying rebels may have accidentally misidentified MH17 as a military aircraft. Russia denies responsibility for the attack. Tsemach’s daughter denies he had any direct involvement in the incident, though his military records show he was given the rank of colonel by the so-called ministry of defense of the Donetsk People’s Republic on October 23, 2014, after he was already in command of the air defense brigade. There have been no convictions in the downing of MH17, though an international investigation continues.
Dutch investigators filed charges in June against Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinsky, Oleg Pulatov, who they say all have connections to Russian intelligence, and Leonid Kharchenko, a Ukrainian they say is the commander of a Russian-backed unit in Donetsk. The suspects are believed to be in Russian or eastern Ukrainian territory, effectively putting them out of the reach of Western law enforcement. They are not expected to show up for their trial, scheduled for March. Ukrainian and Russian-backed rebel forces have been fighting since 2014. The two sides are in an uneasy stalemate, despite several attempts at a ceasefire. About 13,000 people have died in the conflict thus far.
Ukrainian special forces capture separatist commander suspected in Malaysia Airlines flight shootdown – Washington Examiner
Ukrainian special operations forces reportedly went behind enemy lines to arrest a former commander of pro-Russian separatists who is suspected of being involved in the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. Ukrainian forces captured Vladimir Tsemach June 27 at his apartment in Snizhne, a city in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic in eastern Ukraine.
2019-07-05T15:02:25Z