A policeman representing Donetsk People's Republic stands guard at the crash site of the downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, near the village of Grabovo. Photo: Reuters
Germany's intelligence service believes Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down by pro-Russian rebels using a missile taken from a Ukraine military base, a German newspaper has reported.
The finding contradicts previous claims – including by Prime Minister Tony Abbott and US Secretary of State John Kerry – that the missile was supplied by Russia.
Sunday's Der Spiegel reported that the BND, Germany's foreign intelligence service, had completed a detailed analysis of the July 17 tragedy, in which all 298 passengers and crew died.
Two weeks ago, BND president Gerhard Schindler presented the evidence to a parliamentary committee, including satellite images and photos.
The intelligence indicated that pro-Russian separatists captured a BUK missile system from a Ukrainian military base, then later fired it on MH17,Spiegel reported.
Ukraine has accused Russia of being directly responsible for the attack, and its own security service provided recordings of calls that it claimed proved the link.
In July, the head of Ukraine's SBU, Vitaly Naida, said it had "clear evidence" of the involvement of Russian citizens in the attack on MH17, which he had provided to international intelligence services.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, in his recent "shirtfront" challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said those on board MH17 were "murdered with Russian support".
