Australians were Sunday remembering those killed on Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 at church services, as stories emerged of parents losing children, and doctors, teachers and a nun among the dead.
Twenty-eight of the 298 people on the plane apparently shot down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday were Australians, while eight more were permanent residents of the country.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who attended a Catholic mass in Sydney, spoke of the nation's anguish, saying there would hardly be any Australians who hadn't been emotionally touched by the tragedy.
"You look at the faces of the dead and they're your neighbours, they're your friends, they could be your kids because let's face it, we are a people who like to travel," he told the ABC.
"My own daughters flew on MH17 some months ago on their way home from Europe. So this is a tragedy which touches us deeply."
Bishop Peter Comensoli, who led the mass at Sydney's St Mary's Catholic Cathedral, said the downing of MH17 was not an accident, but "the outcome of a trail of human evil".
In Melbourne, a special mass was held for the HIV/AIDS experts and campaigners who had boarded the Malaysia Airlines flight as they made their way to that city for an international AIDS conference.
The media has been filled with the stories of those Australians killed, including 12-year-old Mo Maslin and his siblings, Otis, 8, and Evie, 10, who were travelling home with their grandfather Nick Norris.
Their parents Rin Norris and Anthony Maslin had decided to stay a few days longer in Amsterdam and so were not on the flight, The Sunday Telegraph reported.
In Melbourne, others were struggling to come to terms with the death of Hans van den Hende, his wife, Shaliza Dewa, and their three children Piers, 13, Marnix, 12, and Margaux, 8.
While in Queensland, the town of Toowoomba was mourning the deaths of Roger and Jill Guard, both doctors, who died as they were returning to Australia after attending a medical conference.
Catholic nun Philomene Tiernan, 77, who had been associated with Sydney's Kincoppal-Rose Bay School, teaching thousands of students over more than 30 years is also among the dead.
"I don't really care about the war between the Ukrainians and the Russians, but I would love to have my daughter come home," said Paul Bell, whose teacher daughter Emma Bell died as she made her way back to Australia to her job teaching Aboriginal children.
"I have lost my daughter. She was only 30 years old. She was one of the most beautiful people you could ever know," he said, in comments published in The Sunday Telegraph.
Abbott said a national memorial service would be held once the families had had some time to grieve.
AFP
Sun Jul 20 2014
New South Wales Governor Marie Bashir, Margie Abbott, Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Lady Lynne Cosgrove and Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove sing a hymn at St. Mary's Cathedral commemorating victims of MH17 - Pic by Rob Griffith
AWANI Ringkas: Tindakan boikot tersasar jauh - Mufti Perak
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
TnG eWallet dikemas kini dengan kalkulator tukaran mata wang untuk kad prabayar Visa
APLIKASI Touch n Go eWallet hari ini telah dikemas kini dengan ciri kalkulator penukaran mata wang.
Gaji penjawat awam negeri Selangor akan dinaikkan selaras pengumuman PM - Amirudin
Gaji penjawat awam negeri Selangor akan dinaikkan selaras pengumuman kenaikan gaji oleh Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim pada 1 Mei lepas.
Indonesia alih tumpuan aksi playoff berdepan Guinea
Ketua jurulatih Indonesia kini berperang dengan masa untuk menyediakan pemainnya yang keletihan menghadapi perlawanan playoff Sukan Olimpik.
'Cengkaman' 43 tahun Loudness bakal diterjemahkan menerusi konsert
Loudness bukanlah asing bagi peminat muzik heavy metal tempatan apatah lagi mereka boleh diklasifikasikan sebagai ikon rock yang cukup berpengaruh.
Boustead Heavy Industries terima kontrak sokongan kapal selam TLDM bernilai RM43.6 juta
Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation Berhad (BHIC) menerima kontrak sokongan kapal selam Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) daripada Kementerian Pertahanan bernilai RM43.6 juta.
Tesla lancarkan stesen 'supercharging' V4 pertama rantau Asia Tenggara di Malaysia
TESLA hari ini mengumumkan pelancaran stesen pengecasan kereta Tesla Supercharging V4 secara rasminya di Malaysia.
Orang utan rawat luka sendiri guna tumbuhan
Orang utan bernama Rakus merawat luka di mukanya dengan mengunyah daun Akar Kuning dan berulang kali menyapu ke atas luka itu.
X ubah ciri 'block', komen masih boleh dibaca
CIRI block di X (Twitter) ialah cara paling mudah untuk menghalang akaun tertentu daripada muncul di susur masa atau pemegang akaun membaca ciapan anda.
Sambungan bluetooth dari bumi ke satelit berjaya dilakukan
Hubble Network, sebuah syarikat pemula dari Amerika Syarikat berjaya melakukan sambungan bluetooth dari bumi ke satelit di angkasa lepas.