By Izzud deen Redzuan / Shawal Ras
GOMBAK: ‘Hari Berkabung Malaysia’ or National Mourning Day has been declared by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in conjunction with the arrival of the victims the MH17 crash on August 22nd, 2014, Friday.
The first batch of MH17 crashed victims is scheduled to touch down at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Sepang (KLIA) at 10am on board special plane from Amsterdam this Friday.
The Malaysia’s authority said that 15 of the 16 bodies to be brought back are those of Malaysians and six of them were Muslims. While the 16th is a Dutch citizen, who will be buried here at the request of the victim’s family.
Upon arrival, the remains of each victim will be carried off the plane by members of the Malaysian Armed Forces and the ceremony in honour of victims would take a place at Bunga Raya Complex, KLIA.
The Deputy Prime Minister said during a media conference that the ceremony to honour the victims will be solemn, as the occasion demands and there will not be a public holiday on the date. People have also been advised to observe in the moment of silence and honour the victims’ family.
On the date, Malaysia flags are to be flown at half-mast throughout the country and all entertainment shows would be suspended while replacing it with Qur’anic recitations and religious programmes.
Of the 43 Malaysians aboard the flight, 15 were crew and two were infants. The plane was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down in a separatist-held area of Ukraine.
The daughter of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hanapi Mohd Nor of International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Humaira, wrote a message in her Facebook on the one-month passing of his brother, Ahmad Hakimi, a co-pilot of MH17 and a former student of the university’s matriculation centre: “Missing my hero right now. See you soon, Kimi. Your little sister just misses you too much. I was truly lucky to be able to call you my brother for the past 25 years. You will always be my only brother. You are my hero.”
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends, and loved ones of those who were on board the doomed flight. Al-Fatihah.
Photo taken from Facebook