DNA verification process holds remains of victims from being released - Najib

The remains of the Malaysian Airlines (MAS) MH17 jetliner crash victims are not expected to be flown home before Hari Raya Aidilfitri due to technicalities in DNA verification process.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the DNA verification is intense work and time consuming. “The whole process takes weeks or even months,” he told reporters after signing the condolence book at the Netherlands Embassy, today.

“This cannot be done before Hari Raya,” he said.

Earlier, Najib had expressed his wish for the remains of the 43 Malaysians to be flown back home before Hari Raya, which falls on Monday.

The Malaysian Airlines (MAS) MH17 was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine last Thursday.