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The mysterious search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 may be coming to a sad end. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak issued a press statement this morning in which he disclosed that the plane was last spotted in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Australia. The relatives of missing plane passengers were invited to attend a press conference in which they were told the lives of all 239 passengers on board were "lost."
Families received this horrible news shortly after Australian officials announced they discovered two objects -- a "gray or green circular object" and an "orange rectangular object" -- in the southern Indian Ocean that they believe are related to the missing plane. A satellite was able to confirm that the plane went down in the middle of the ocean and that its location was too far away from land to make an assumption that any passenger was able to reach a safe place.
With that said, relatives may be able to begin moving forward and closing this anguishing chapter of their lives, but this is no way solves the mystery of Flight 370. Neither the plane, nor any of the bodies, have yet to be retrieved and we still have no idea what actually caused the crash. It's been determined the plane was flying very low at one point and that it took a sharp turn that is believed to have been "intentional." Authorities have not ruled out the possibility that "foul play" was involved.
Malaysia Airlines released a statement that has been published on Twitter in which representatives echoed the Prime Minister's words and vowed to continue cooperating with the investigation:
The ongoing multinational search operation will continue, as we seek answers to the questions which remain. Alongside the search for MH370, there is an intensive investigation, which we hope will also provide answers.
As dreadful as this news is, I think it's important that family members not be led to believe there is hope where none exists. I don't think full closure will be achieved until rescue crews are able to locate bodies or debris that can be linked to the passengers -- and this may take weeks or even months. Our hearts go out to the devastated family members at this awful time.
Are you surprised that relatives have been told there were no survivors on board?
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