Malaysian Prime Minister: The Found Piece Belongs to MH370 Aircraft

Najib Razak, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, announced on Wednesday, August 5, that international experts have confirmed that the piece found on an island in the Indian Ocean belongs to the MH370 aircraft. This aircraft, which was owned by Malaysia Airlines, disappeared over a year ago with 239 passengers and crew on board. According to Reuters, the Prime Minister stated, "Today marks 515 days since this aircraft disappeared, and I must say today that the team of international experts has definitively confirmed that the piece found on Reunion Island belongs to MH370." Najib Razak emphasized, "I want to assure all those whose lives have been affected by this tragedy that the Malaysian government will do everything in its power to clarify the truth of this incident." The discovery of this wing piece is the first sign of a possible crash of the MH370 passenger aircraft in the ocean, but many questions still remain. The wife of one of the passengers told Reuters, "Although they found a piece, this is not the end (of the MH370 issue). They must find the aircraft and the passengers, including my husband." Malaysia Airlines described the discovery of the wing piece as a "breakthrough success" regarding the fate of the missing aircraft. In a statement, Malaysia Airlines said, "We hope and expect that more pieces of the aircraft will be found to solve the mystery." Malaysian and Australian officials, who are primarily responsible for the search, have previously emphasized that they have no doubt the aircraft crashed somewhere in the Indian Ocean. However, since March of last year, when the aircraft went missing, no pieces have been found until now. Reunion Island, which belongs to France, is located near Madagascar and is much farther from the main search area for the aircraft. However, ocean currents may have carried potential pieces to various locations. This piece was found on August 3.