KIEV, August 07. /ITAR-TASS/. International experts have finished the first phase of search operations at the Malaysian Boeing crash site in eastern Ukraine over threats to their lives, Ukraine’s state fact-finding commission said on Thursday.

“Less than three areas where fragments of the crashed plane are scattered have not yet been searched,” the commission said. “The experts will discuss possibilities to begin phase two of the search operations soon.”

Before the decision on further search is taken, most of the experts will leave Ukraine. Some of them however will stay in Ukraine to maintain contact and coordinate actions. The ceasefire regime in the crash area established by the Ukrainian president at the request of the international experts will be lifted until the beginning of the second phase, the commission said.

A Boeing-777 of the Malaysia Airlines (flight MH17) en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed on July 17 in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk Region 60 km from the Russian border, in the zone of combat operation between the Donetsk self-defence forces and the Ukrainian army. All the passengers and crewmembers onboard the plane - 298 people - died. Most of the passengers - 196 people - were Dutch citizens.