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MH17 victims Mo, Evie and Otis are finally coming home.

Mo, Evie and Otis Maslin, who died on flight MH17 in July.

 

The three Maslin children, who died when flight MH17 was shot down in July, have finally arrived back on Australian soil.

Mo, 12, Evie, 10, and Otis, 8, perished on Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 with the grandfather, Nick Norris, when the passenger plane was shot down over Ukraine on 17 July 2014.

The Herald Sun reports the bodies of the three Perth children arrived in Melbourne from the Netherlands on Thursday afternoon and will now be returned to their parents, Anthony Maslin and Marite “Rin” Norris, in Perth.

 A lone piper played as defence personnel carried the coffins from the transport plane into a hangar yesterday, The Courier Mail reports.

A total of 38 Australians who died when the Malaysian Airline flight was shot down in a disaster that claimed 298 lives.

Maslin children MH17
Rin Norris and Anthony Maslin, parents of MH17 crash victims Evie, Mo and Otis Maslin release balloons before the round 19 AFL match between the Fremantle Dockers and the Carlton Blues at Patersons Stadium on July 31 in Perth (Photo: Paul Kane/Getty Images)
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The return of the Maslin children’s bodies follows escalating tensions between Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Russian President Vladimir Putin over the loss of Australian lives in the tragedy.

Mr Abbott — who believes the plane was shot down by Russian-backed rebels — this week threatened to “shirt front” Mr Putin over the event at next month’s G20 meeting in Brisbane.

The Maslin children, dubbed “the angels” of flight MH17, and their grandfather were honoured at a memorial service attended by more than 1000 people at Scotch College in August.

AFL team the Fremantle Dockers also farewelled at a match against Carlton on July 31, where large purple balloons were released into the sky in their honour.

A touching statement released by the Maslin parents after the tragedy in July said: “No hate in the world is as strong as the love we have for our children, for Mo, for Evie, for Otis.”

The statement also thanked supporters for their love and support.

It is believed 27 of the Australian MH17 victims have now been returned to home soil, The Courier Mail reports.

Tearful friends and family gathered to remember the Maslin children and their grandfather Nick Norris in August at this moving memorial service:

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