MH17 crash: Australian parents living in 'hell beyond hell'

Sydney, July 24 (IANS) The family of three Australian children killed on board Malaysua Airlines flight MH17 has described how they are living in a "hell beyond hell" as they struggle to deal with their loss.

Mo, 12, Evie, 10, and Otis Maslin, 8, died with their grandfather Nick Norris while flying back home on board the crashed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17.

In a statement issued through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Anthony Maslin and Marite Norris said "our pain is intense and relentless", Xinhua reported.

"Our babies are not here with us - we need to live with this act of horror, every day and every moment for the rest of our lives," they said.

"No one deserves what we are going through. Not even the people who shot our whole family out of the sky."

They said they drew comfort from the love and support of friends "because this expression of love is what is keeping us alive".

"No hate in the world is as strong as the love we have for our children, for Mo, for Evie, for Otis," they said.

"No hate in the world is as strong as the love we have for Grandad Nick."

The Maslin children were returning to Perth with their grandfather to get ready for the school term after a family holiday in Europe.

Flight MH17, while flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, crashed July 17 in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew on board.

Reports indicated that the Boeing 777 crashed on being hit by a missile. US President Barack Obama said initial investigations showed that the missile was fired from an area in Ukraine controlled by anti-Kiev militants.