Malaysian Airlines MH17 passenger plane carrying 295 people including between five and ten Britons 'shot down with ground-to-air missile' at 33,000ft over Ukraine near to Russian border

A Malaysian Airlines passenger plane has been shot down on the Russian-Ukraine border in an 'act of terrorism', killing all 295 people on board including a reported five to ten Britons and 23 Americans.

The Boeing 777 aircraft was hit by a sophisticated surface-to-air missile over territory near Donetsk held by pro-Russian rebels who the Ukrainian government says are backed by the Kremlin.

The Ukrainian authorities laid the blame for the attack on the rebels by denying any responsibility for the missile launch, with President Petro Poroshenko called the downing an act of terrorism as he called for an international investigation into the crash.

TV pictures from the scene showed a pall of smoke billowing into the sky near Donetsk, apparently from the stricken flight MH17.

Witnesses say body parts are scattered over a distance of 15km, suggesting the plane broke up in mid-air.

Whitehall sources told MailOnline that between five and ten Britons were feared dead. Interfax news agency reported that 23 U.S. citizens were on board, and it is thought that 71 Dutch citizens were on the plane.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: 'I'm shocked and saddened by the Malaysian air disaster. Officials from across Whitehall are meeting to establish the facts.'

He has summoned officials from across Whitehall for urgent talks at 7pm to discuss the latest on the crash, and what is known about any British casualties.

A Whitehall source said that this evening's meeting was involving Government officials, rather than ministers, and was focused on establishing what needs to be done for any British citizens caught up in the incident.

Britain has also requested an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York, the Foreign Office said.

The Foreign Office is also in talks with consular teams in Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpur to obtain passenger lists to establish how many UK nationals were on board.

‘We are aware of the reports and are urgently working to establish what has happened,’ a Foreign Office spokesman said. 

Asked about reports that up to 10 British people had been on board, the spokesman added: ‘Our first priority is to establish if there are any British persons on board but we are not in a position to go beyond that line.’

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation told U.S. President Barack Obama that a Malaysian airplane crashed on Ukrainian territory, the Kremlin said.

The two leaders held a pre-planned call on the situation in Ukraine during which information became available from air traffic controllers about the crash.

Twenty-three Americans are feared dead in the crash, which President Barack Obama called a 'terrible tragedy'.

The president spoke briefly about the crash as he appeared in Wilmington, Delaware on Thursday afternoon and said his national security team are working to determine if there were any U.S. citizens on board the plane that was carrying 295 people to Kuala Lumpur.