Malaysian Airlines flight MH17: Parents of three Australian children killed in crash call for an end to 'this pointless war'

Mo, Evie and Otis Maslin all died when the passenger jet was downed in July

Evie, Mo and Otis Maslin were all killed when flight MH17 was shot down (Supplied)

The parents of three Australian children who were killed when Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over Ukraine have released a statement in which they describe their “ongoing hell” and call for an end to the “pointless war”.

Mo, 12, Evie, 10 and Otis, 8, along with their grandfather, Nick Norris, were among those killed when the passenger jet was shot out of the sky on 17 July.

In a statement released by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Anthony Maslin and Marite Norris said: “Our children were taken from us by a war in which we, and our country had no part. It is impossible to understand the reason they were blown out of the sky.

“Our lives are an ongoing hell. The pain we are enduring is unfathomable, and we grieve alongside families in the Ukraine, the Netherlands, Russia, Malaysia, Australia and elsewhere.

“Please respect our children’s memory, and stop this pointless war.”

The three children, from Perth, Western Australia, were flown back to Australia on Thursday. They will now be returned to their parents.

All 298 passengers and crew were killed (Reuters)

In the statement, Mr Maslin and Ms Norris paid tribute to their children, who they described as their “entire world”.

“Our love and respect for our children remains unlimited and unconditional. It will never weaken,” the statement adds.

“We have been two of the luckiest and happiest people on the planet. What remains for us now is to honour our children.

"No hate in the world is as strong as the love we have for our children, for Mo, for Evie, for Otis.

"No hate in the world is as strong as the love we have for Grandad Nick."

Relatives of the killed Malaysia Airlines crew prays during the 'Moment of Silent' at the arrival ceremony of Malaysia Airlines MH17 victims in August (EPA)

All 298 passengers and crew on board the MH17 flight were killed when the plane was hit by a large number of “high energy objects”; 38 of the passengers on board were Australian citizens and residents, including some children.

It has been alleged that the plane was hit by a surface-to-air missile fired by Russian-backed separatist rebels in Ukraine.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, left, and his wife Rosmah Mansor in Hilversum, Netherlands, where crash victims were identified (EPA)

Australia’s prime minister, Tony Abbot, has said he will confront Vladimir Putin over the downing of the flight at the G20 summit of economic leaders held in Brisbane next month.

A reward of $30m has been offered for information leading to the identification of those responsible for the incident.