it has been nearly two days since melalaysia flooight 17 wa shot down. victims' bodies have begun to decompose in the heat. international outrage is directed at russia and director vladimir putin. has russia is reacting to the crisis. malaysia investigators arrive in kiev to try to start piecing together what happened. meanwhile, families of the 298 people on board are in mourning. the tributes to their loved ones.

warm welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around around the world. you're watching "cnn international." i'm isha sesay and i'm john vause. a special team of investigators have arrived to find out what happened to flight 17. >> bodies from the plane scattered across the countryside are beginning to decompose in the heat. officials say they believe the plane was brought down by missile, possibly fired with pro-russia rebels. president obama says president vladimir putin has the key to ending the conflict in ukraine. >> if mr. putin makes a decision that we are not going to allow heavy armaments and the flow of fighters into ukraine, across

the ukrainian/russia border, then it will stop. if it stops, then the separatists will still have the capacity to enter into negotiations and try to arrive at the sort of political accommodations that mr. putin himself says he wants to see. he has the most control over that situation. and so far at least he has not exercised it. >> president obama talking about the political element of this crisis. but, of course, all eyes on that crash site itself to figure out exactly what happened to this plane. international monitors say they will try again today to visit that site where malaysia airlines flight 17 crashed. the team from the organization for security and cooperation in europe, osce, visited the crash site for just over an hour friday. >> they say they were met with hostility from rebels and were not given full access to the site. one of the team members spoke

with cnn's erin burnett. >> once we arrived there, things escalated very rapidly, not for the better. we were met, if you want to put it that way, by quite inhospitable armed individuals. they severely limited the amount of area where we could observe. they -- they were aggressive towards us. and also the amount of time that we spent on the ground was only 75 minutes. they were very weary of us going close to any fuselage. the bodies are laid out there. they don't appear to have been touched since they fell from the sky. and also very importantly, of course, to everybody involved is that there's very little security around the perimeter of the site. so, really anyone can go on the site and tamper with the fuselage or whatever. so, it's a very complicated, difficult and dangerous environment. >> and did you see any of that, michael? anybody -- were there people roaming around? those armed individuals, i

suppose, those pro-russian rebels that were there, were they tampering with the evidence in any way that you could see? >> no. in fact, they seem to have made some interesting preparations for us before we arrived. they kind of organized all the journalists in one group to make it look like they hadn't wandered around but most of the journalists that had pre-roaming access through a number of the sites. but when we were,there everything was very contained. it seemed even personal belongings from some of the wreckage was indicated in such way to indicate there was no looting. so, it was not only a very tense situation but almost comical in a sense the way they tried to orchestrate it. >> yukraine is accusing russia f covering up its role in this attack. international correspondent nic robertson joins us from. team of investigators from malaysia arrived and what role will they play and will they get access to the crash site any

time soon? >> reporter: they hope to get access to the crash site, free and unfettered access. they have arrived as part of their special investigation delegation that took a charter flight from malaysia. a team of 25 monitors from the osce couldn't get access to the site yesterday and were actually turned around after 75 minutes and made to leave. so, it's hard to see at the moment, under the current situation and current conditions, how that team of malaysian investigators can proceed. obviously, there will be procedural issues that they can -- that they can get done here in kiev with the ukrainian authorities. but the reality is, when they get there on the ground, it's anyone's guess at the moment if they'll get access to the site and what they'll be able to do when they get there, where they'll be able to transport any material that they may want from the size. all these detailed things are

still very much unclear. that's because the government doesn't control the site. that the sites are controlled by various different pro-russian rebel groups. so, at the moment, that team of investigators are here, they're ready to begin, but it's not clear what they can actually really be able to start with on the ground, john. >> you say the government is not in control of the site, but they do have some other compelling evidence which seems to implicate moscow. how credible is that? >> reporter: well, the government has produced what it says are recordings of conversations between pro-russian rebels and what they describe as russian handlers. we can't independently verify those. they have pointed to the fact that in that area at least two ukrainian government military aircraft have been shot down in recent days. they also have released video that they say is a book missile launcher driving back across the border from eastern ukraine into

russia with one of its missiles missing. again, we cannot independently verify that video. however, what the obama administration is saying is that they believe that the system was supplied -- did come from russia, across the border into eastern ukraine. that they believe that the missile was fired from inside eastern ukraine from rebel-held territory. so, the compelling information at the moment, not just from the government here, but from the -- from what the united states has been able to glean from its radar and thermal imaging technology has been able to indicate it was rebels -- one group of pro-russian rebels. it seems on the face of it at the moment what the ukrainian government is saying to some degree holds water. >> nic robertson, senior correspondent, we appreciate it. thanks. although a lack of unhampered access to the crash

site is a major problem, officials are already working on the investigation. they're using evidence from electronic surveillance. cnn's tom foreman explains. >> reporter: you know a plane like this gives off radar signals which can be tracked by satellites and other remote-sensing devices. that's also true of the buk missile defense system. it uses a powerful radar to paint the sky and pick out targets. when it fires a missile, that gives off a heat signature of its launch and in air that missile will also give off its own radar signal as it tries to narrow its flight into its target. all of those signals can be sensed from afar. when you put them all together, what you wind up with is a way to draw a line from the launch up to the plane, back down to the launcher. that is how investigators have already been able to narrow what was a very big circle of suspicion yesterday down to

something that is much smaller now and allows them to focus their efforts. add to things the video released by ukraine interior of the minister showing what they say is a buk missile, with one launcher missing, and this allows them to focus the investigation even as they wait for access to the crash site, which eventually they must have. >> well, that was cnn's tom foreman there. >> yeah, this investigation will obviously take a long time. >> yeah. >> there's so much there, so many moving pieces in all of this. and as we've been saying, they need to get access to the site. that's not just for the investigation, but also for the relatives because we're speaking to some of the family members who had relatives on board that plane. they want to start funeral services. and they can't get the bodies back yet. and there are so many nationalities involved here. australia for one is mourning the loss of its foreign nationals who were on board flight 17. >> more than 20 of the victims were australian. prime minister tony abbott is

echoing the call for a thorough investigation. >> 298 innocent people have been killed. people who had no part in any conflict in europe, people who were simply living their lives. now, their lives have been snuffed out. in the most horrific way. and that's why this investigation needs to go ahead and this is why the standing of all parties will, in the end, be determined by the foreigners and the completeness of their -- of their cooperation with this investigation. >> this is such an unspeakable tragedy. 298 people on that flight, mh-17. and the crash has torn one australian family apart. >> khera belanger has the story of three children and their grandfather, all of whom died when the plane came down. >> reporter: the parents of

these three young face are dealing with an unimageable grief. they were among the victims killed on flight mh-17. they were on their way home with their grandfather, nick norris. four of the 28 australians who would never return. >> beautiful, beautiful kids. just gentle, clever, beautiful kids. >> reporter: in a shocking twist of fate, the children's parents had decided to stay in amsterdam a few more days. >> my heart is with my sister. >> reporter: before boarding the plane, nick norris joked about flying to malaysian airlines, referring to the flight that went missing four months ago. never dreaming this boeing 777 would also perish. >> i spoke to him just before he called the plane to find out when he was leaving. and told him i loved him and told him i'd see him when he got

back. >> reporter: sister was returning from a sabbatical. staff and students at sydney school where she taught find it hard to comprehend. >> she's been a great mentor and she's also a personal friend, so we're just devastated. the shock has been incredible. >> reporter: in another terrible twist of fate, kayly mann has now lost relatives in both malaysian airline tragedies. her brother and his wife mary died on flight mh-370. her stepdaughter was on mh-17. >> it was hard to fathom, you know, losing family on two of -- two crashes in the space of four months. >> so, next time someone says, when all this first started in ukraine, why should i care about ukraine -- >> absolutely. >> -- now we know. >> now we know. because this is a tragedy with global implication. it touches people right around the world. >> unintended consequences. >> yes, it does.

>> we'll take a short break. when we come back, there are so many victims of malaysia airline flight 17. we'll take a closer look at some of those who lost their lives and tribute being paid to them by friends and family. as they press on with ground offensive in gaza, we look at how the operation is affecting the lives have palestinians. we'll talk to a lawmaker in ramallah after the break. ould se you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that. well, did you know words really can hurt you? what...? jesse don't go! jesse...no! i'm sorry daisy, but i'm a loner. and a loner gotta be alone. heee yawww! geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. jesse?

welcome back, everyone. let's get you up to speak on our continuing coverage of the downing of malaysia airline

flight mh17. they hope to begin the process of finding out what exactly happened to the jumbo jet. >> international monitors from europe say they will try again today to visit the site where the plane crashed. the osce members say they were met with hostility from separatists and were not given access to the site of -- or full access to the site on friday. now, close to 300 people lost their lives on malaysia airlines flight 17. each one has their own story. we'll take a little time, show you the ones we know about at this stage. >> yeah. there's quinn lucas schansman, studying business in amsterdam and he loved soccer. a friend says he was the kind of guy who stuck up for you, who made you laugh when you were hurting. >> krlijin keij zechlt r was from amsterdam, pursuing a doctdock doctor rat. she and her boyfriend were traveling today.

>> nick norris, western australian traveling with three grandchildren. three of 80 children, you heard me right, 80 children on that flight, he was bringing them home for the new school year. they say he loved his grandkids, loved sailing and looked forward to sailing with them off the coast of perth. >> one colleague says he was a hard core scientists, joep lange. he fought for the dignity of everyone infected with hiv around the world. >> that aids conference is scheduled to start in melbourne this weekend. >> the president of the international aids society says the conference will go ahead, it will be dedicated to the victims. >> the extent of our loss is

hard to comprehend and express. our colleagues were traveling because of their dedication to bringing an end to aids. we will honor their commitment and keep them in our hearts as we begin our program on sunday. >> yeah. and, you know, because there are so many people on this plane, and we're still finding out who were on board. you made the point, 80 children were on board and that's why the death toll went up because many kids were sitting on their parents' lap. let's take a look at the scientists headed to the conference. >> a lead researcher western agriculture of food. >> both and he his wife were

returning from the netherlands, because they were visiting family. anderson cooper spoke with his brother drew. >> my brother was one of the most generous, warmest people i know. a guy that enjoyed life. liked adventure but cared a lot about other people. he had a very, very strong -- very strong family man. loved his kids. and his grand kids. just a wonderful individual. >> he had three grown kids, is that correct? >> that's correct. >> i understand they lived near him. how are they holding up? >> it's been really tough, as you can imagine. such a shock. that's -- you know, we're just still trying to process this. it just happened so suddenly. i just -- it's hard for me to even still comprehend what happened. >> when something like this happens, i mean, what is the process? did somebody contact you? how did you first learn that your brother and his wife were on even on the flight?

>> my -- well, my family is originally from the netherlands. my parents were dutch. they emigrated to australia. that's where i was born and the rest of my siblings. so, we have a lot of family still in the netherlands. they were visiting there as well as other parts of europe. my uncle had brought them to the airport in amsterdam. and it was him that called me yesterday morning, absolutely distraught taking, have you seen the news that this plane has gone down? you know, your brother was on the plane. and i -- you know, i was in disbelief. i said, how do you know? are you sure? he said, absolutely, i dropped them off at the airport. i can see it's just crashed. that's how i found out. >> i know your family released a statement saying you're not seeking justice or retribution for the accident. that you aren't placing blame. can you explain why that was important for you to convey? >> well, yeah. we're -- our entire family, we're strong christians.

our faith is very important to us. and part of that faith tradition says that we should forgive those that have wronged us. and in this case, you know, we know that there were some terrible things that were done. we don't know who was responsible. it's not important for us to -- to come after those people. if anything, we want to forgive them for some things they've done here that they shouldn't have done. >> remarkable response there. >> yeah. a lot of that forgiveness is going to be needed. >> yeah. >> we'll take a short break. when we come back, we'll try to get the view from the palestinian side of the israe israeli/gaza crisis. we'll speak with a member of the palestinian parliament.

welcome back to cnn news room. there's a warning from israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu says israel's defense forces are ready to further expand their ground offensive in gaza. he did not say what would trigger another escalation in the campaign against hamas militants. >> overnight chanting palestinians on the west bank clashed with police as tensions

ran high. the parts of gaza, as you see here on your screens, are being reduced to rebel. health officials in gaza say more than 300 people have been killed in the military campaign. >> let's get the view of the palestinians. a member of the palestinian parliament, also a founder of the palestinian initiative, joining us now on the line from ramallah. doctor, good to speak with you. what have you been told about the situation inside gaza right now. electricity is out, no running water, medical supplies are running low to treat the injured? >> it's a very, very grave situation. so far the israeli army has killed no less than 310 palestinians. including 71 children, 25 women, 17 elderly people, and 3 disabled people. 24 families were slaughtered completely. that means it eliminated the whole family in each case. and mr. netanyahu is practically

occupying gaza again. he's trying to solve the problem of 45 years of military occupation by expanding. the water supply is cut from very big amount of -- from about 300,000 people. electricity is cut also from wide areas. so, which means about 500,000 people don't have electricity. and they -- and they -- medical supplies are very short. in addition to that, hundreds of thousands of people do not have access to medical or health care. and first aid teams -- our first aid teams as well as medical personnel cannot reach them because of the constant bombardment. >> so, doctor -- >> and this is not a war on hamas. this is a war on all palestinian people in gaza. >> let me interrupt you there, sir, because israel says that as an answer to that, if hamas had accepted the cease-fire afforded

by egyptians, then none of this would have been necessary. my question for you, is there any hope now the u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon can negotiate some kind of cease-fire? is hamas ready to accept it? is that even possible with israeli forces on the ground? >> of course, it's possible, but that requires the world stops dehumanizing palestinians and accepts palestinians as equal human beings. i was very touched about your reports regarding the 298 victims that were killed in the airplane, the attack on the airplane, the malaysian airplane. but please remember and try to represent each of the 310 palestinians that have been killed. we are all human beings. if the world community stops dehumanizing palestinians and accepts them as equal human beings, there can be impact on israel to stop this attack. israel started this war on

palestinians. by the way, it started in the west bank, not only in gaza. israel is the aggressor here. israel has the fourth powerful military power in the world. it's now bombarding -- >> doctor, again, i need to -- >> 141 square miles -- >> i would say this is not a campaign which they started. it was response to hamas rocket fire, jihad rocket fire. we can get into that and be here month after month after month. i'm just wondering this time around, this offensive seems to have been so brutal, is this a game-changer in terms of israeli/palestinian relations? though have never been good, but it seems to me they are especially low right now. would it be possible to get back to any kind of negotiations in the future? >> it is possibly could be a very serious game-changer, yes, you're right. of course, it started with the prime minister of israel, netanyahu, breaking initiative

and destroying the peace process. basically what you see today is not only the initiative of killing of hundreds of palestinians but the end of the two-state solution. in a way, mr. netanyahu is saying, i don't accept two-state solution and he also does not accept one-state solution so it's discrimination, apartheid and colonialization on the ground. this is a game-changer and it's very serious because reoccupying gaza completely. instead of ending occupation, he is expanding it. >> doctor, we shall leave it there. we appreciate you bringing us up to date, and bringing us perspective from your opinion. i've known you for a long time. good to hear from you. we appreciate it, sir. it's difficult what's going on there right now. each side, you know, it goes back to -- everyone responds to what the last person did. >> absolutely. >> you can keep going back and

back and back. still to come on cnn news room, evidence at the mh17 crash site is spread out over several kilometers. we'll look at the next steps investigators will need to take. most of those on board flight 17 were from the netherlands. we'll go live to amsterdam just ahead. (vo) you know that dream... where you're the hero? hey... you guys mind warming this fella up for me? i'm gonna go back down, i saw some recyclables. make it happen with verizon xlte. find a car service. we've doubled our 4g lte bandwidth in cities coast to coast. thanks! sure. we've got a spike in temperature.

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