Australian investigators pulled back from MH17 crash site as fighting flares up

Australian MH17 investigators have been given a stark reminder they're working in the middle of a war zone.

A small team of investigators was working on the outskirts of the crash site in eastern Ukraine when artillery was heard falling only a few kilometres away.

European monitors deemed it too unsafe, and pulled the investigators, including AFP officers, away from the area.

Shelling did not affect investigators on the main area of the crash site.

They were able to once again recover human remains and personal belongings, aided for the first time by sniffer dogs.

Fighting continues to escalate in nearby Donetsk, with the Ukrainian military making advances.

Plane wreckage has been found at abandoned pro-separatist check points.

In the latest developments, the OSCE said they had arrived safely at the search zone, but once again, shelling can be heard nearby.