Ukraine declares 1-day cease-fire in MH17 crash site area

Ukraine's military announced a one-day cease-fire on Thursday to allow international experts full access to the site where Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crashed two weeks ago.

Fighting between the military and pro-Russia rebels near the crash site has repeatedly prevented international monitors and investigators reaching the huge debris field where human remains and victims' belongings still lie scattered.

The Netherlands, whose citizens made up about two-thirds of those killed in the crash, is leading the international investigation efforts.

The Ukrainian parliament is holding an extraordinary, closed-door session Thursday during which it is discussing the MH17 crash.

The lawmakers are expected to vote on a motion to authorize Dutch, Australian and Malaysian investigators to operate around the crash site.

Instead, the wreckage lay in eerie silence, while smoke from weapons fire rose in the distance.

Shrapnel holes were visible in the cockpit's remains and the site still reeked of jet fuel and the stench of decay.