Category: English

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...

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...

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...

Letter to President Putin

2 February 2016 Mr Vladimir Putin President of the Russian Federation Moscow Kremlin Moscow, Russia Dear President I am writing about the death of my only son, Jack O’Brien, who was killed on MH 17. Jack was just 25 years old and was returning to Australia from a seven...

A message to those who shot down Malaysian Airlines Flight MH 17

Our names are Jon and Meryn O’Brien.  We live in Sydney, Australia. On July 17 last year, in Ukrainian airspace, our only son Jack was killed when Malaysian Airlines Flight MH 17 was shot down. He was 25. We make this statement on behalf of our son who would...