Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was likely struck by multiple "high-energy objects from outside the aircraft", causing it to break up over eastern Ukraine, a preliminary report into the deadly aviation disaster concluded on Tuesday.

The report by the Dutch Safety Board stopped short of saying the Boeing 777 was shot down by a missile, but its findings appear to point to that conclusion. It also did not say who might have been responsible.

The Boeing 777 suddenly plunged out of the sky on July 17 over rebel-held territory in Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew on board.