Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte gave the instruction for flags at half-mast on Friday in the Netherlands to mourn the victims in the crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17.

The aircraft carried 283 passengers, of which at least 154 Dutch citizens, and 15 crew members, crashed on Thursday in eastern Ukraine.

Due to the disaster, Rutte asked ministers to order flags half-mast at all main buildings of the central government. In addition, Rutte requested municipalities, provinces and Dutch diplomatic missions abroad to act accordingly.

On Friday morning at 2:00 am (0000 GMT), Rutte gave another press briefing in The Hague, in which he declared he cannot say anything about the cause of the disaster.

"There is a lot of information, but first we want the facts on the table," he said after a crisis meeting at the Ministry of Security and Justice.

Rutte interrupted his vacation after hearing the news of the disaster to return to The Netherlands on Thursday night. After arriving at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport he said he was "shocked" and "devastated".

He had already contacted with US President Barack Obama, his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on the issue.