A flurry of media reports are reporting that a Malaysian Airlines passenger jet has been shot down over Ukrainian airspace. The Boeing 777 carried 295 people and was “at altitude” (30,000 feet) according to the Interfax agency. All on board are said to have perished, according to Ukrainian sources.
The media reports and video of a fiery crash have exploded on the internet after this initial tweet came from Malaysian Airlines.
On FOX News Channel’s breaking news coverage — Jennifer Griffin, FOX News Pentagon correspondent, says the Ukrainian interior minister reports a Russian surface-to-air missile system brought down the flight. Griffin says Ukrainian civilians and government officials had reported seeing the advanced Russian BOOK missile system move into the country from Russia in recent days.
Anton Herashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, was quoted by the Associated Press as saying the plane had been hit by a missile at an altitude of 10,000m (33,000ft). The claim could not be verified independently.Reports suggest the plane fell between Krasni Luch in Luhansk region and Shakhtarsk in the neighbouring region of Donetsk.
First tweets and photos are coming from eyewitnesses on the ground.
**UPDATE** – Ukraine’s Secret Service reportedly intercepted a call to Russian intelligence from pro-Russian separatists claiming they had downed a plane.
**UPDATE** U.S. defense and intel officials are confirming that the Malaysian passenger plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile. So far, there’s been no official word on the origin of the missile — either inside Ukraine or from Russian territory.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY