A Letter from an Australian: MH17 – Ten Years On
These are my reflections and questions as I try to make sense of the tragedy that has changed our family’s life (and so many others). They are my thoughts alone: I am not speaking on behalf of any others in the MH17 community. I don’t want it to be...
Statement on MH17 Trial Conclusion – Novaya Gazeta
Our son Jack (aged 25) was killed early on in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, when MH17 was shot down. Jack is now physically absent from our lives and we live with the emptiness and sadness of that painful fact. Jack did not ‘lose’ his life. He was not killed...
Meryn O’Brien’s statement to the MH17 Criminal Trial
My name is Meryn O’Brien and I am the mother of Jack O’Brien. I live in Sydney, Australia. In early 2014 the opportunity came up for Jack to go on a trip overseas. He was 25 years old. He had saved money from his work and decided very quickly...
Jon O’Brien’s statement to the MH17 Criminal Trial
District Court of The Hague My name is Jon O’Brien. My son Jack aged 25, was killed when MH17 was shot down. This is a difficult task. How can I share what matters so deeply and has affected me so profoundly? Jack, our first child, was born on a...
Письмо послу, июль 2022 г.
Его Превосходительству доктору Алексею Павловскому Послу России Посольство Российской Федерации 78 Canberra Avenue Griffith ACT 2603 Уважаемый г-н посол! Прошло уже восемь лет с тех пор, как наш сын Джек погиб, когда рейс MH17 малазийских авиалиний был сбит над Украиной. Ему было 25 лет. Правительство Австралии и наша семья...
Letter to Ambassador July 2022
His Excellency Dr Alexey Pavlovsky Ambassador of Russia Embassy of the Russian Federation 78 Canberra Avenue Griffith ACT 2603 Dear Ambassador, It is now eight years since our son Jack was killed when MH17 was shot down over Ukraine. He was 25 years old. The Australian government, and our...
Thoughts on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
About 4.30 this afternoon, preparing to finish my day at work, I flicked open the SMH website on my computer. The headline that leapt out told of Russian invasion of Ukraine. The worst fears of the Ukrainian people and the world have come to pass. Reading stories of the...
A statement on the fifth anniversary of the shooting down of MH17
To the Russian Federation from some affected families 1 July 17, 2019 Five years ago, our family members got on a plane in Amsterdam to make their way home. Not far into the journey, their plane was shot out of the sky by a missile from the 53rd anti-aircraft...
Заявление к пятой годовщине сбивания самолета рейса МН17
От имени семей некоторых погибших пассажиров – граждан Австралии Пять лет назад члены наших семей поднялись на борт самолета в Амстердаме, чтобы полететь домой. Спустя короткое время после взлета, их самолет был сбит ракетой, выпущенной солдатами 53-й зенитно-ракетной бригады российской армии. Все наши любимые члены семьи были убиты в...
It is the World Cup, but Jack is not here to watch it.
I remember how we walked through a stand of eucalypt trees to the ground at which we played. It was 2014 and for the second year I was playing in my son’s football (soccer) team. He was 25 and I was 54. We would park Jack’s old car in...