12:26AM GMT 30 Nov 2014
The mother of a victim of downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 has begun legal proceedings against Ukraine at the European Court of Human Rights, accusing Kiev of failing to close the country’s airspace.
The woman, who lodged her complaint at the Strasbourg-based court “last week”, is suing Ukraine for 800,000 euros ($1 million) in damages for negligent homicide, the German Bild newspaper said.
The Boeing 777 exploded over insurgent-held east Ukraine on July 17, killing all 298 on board, 193 of them Dutch. Four were German, according to the airline.
Kiev and the West have accused separatists of shooting it down with a surface-to-air missile supplied by Russia – a charge Moscow denies.
The plaintiff in the case claims that Ukraine should have closed its airspace to civilian flights when fighting raged in the east of the country, Bild reported.