Malaysian PM confirms debris from MH370

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said in a televised statement on Thursday local time that a piece of an aircraft wing discovered on the French territory La Reunion is from Malaysian Airlines flight 370.

"Today 515 days since the plane disappeared it is with a very heavy heart that an international team of experts have conclusively confirmed that the aircraft debris found on Reunion Island is indeed from MH370," Razak said.

Malaysia Airlines flight 370 mysteriously disappeared in March 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board.

The passengers' relatives have been critical of the Malaysian government's response, with some attacking Razak's administration for its inability to provide answers.

"I would like to assure all those affected by this tragedy that the government of Malaysia is committed to do everything within our means to find out the truth of what happened," said the Malaysian premier.

The discovery of the MH370 wing marks the first time evidence related to the aircraft's disappearance had emerged.

However, deputy Paris prosecutor Serge Mackowiak said that there is a "very high probability that the wing piece - a flaperon - is part of missing flight MH370, adding that examinations needed continue in order to verifiably rule the link.

"There exists a very high probability that the flaperon indeed belongs to flight MH370," Mackowiak said.

Malaysia Airlines issued a statement following Razak's announcement, saying that the families of passengers and crew members had been informed of the discovery.

"We expect and hope that there would be more objects to be found which would be able to help resolve this mystery," Malaysia Airlines said in a statement.

The debris will continue to be investigated by authorities in hopes of discovering the circumstances of MH370's disappearance, which remains a mystery.

ls/jil (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)