We see reports that there may have been American citizens on board and obviously that's our first concern and we are now working every minute to try to confirm those reports as I speak. 

 

So far both Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian rebels are denying they fired on the plane. The jet's wreckage reported to be strewn over a wide area inside eastern Ukraine some 25 miles from the Russian border.

 

The Federal Aviation Administration had warned airlines in the US to avoid flying over the Crimean Peninsula and adjacencies  because of tensions over the region. But as NPR's David Schaper explains that restricted airspace is not with the Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777 went down. 

 

The FAA issued a warning back in April that prohibited US flight operations over the Crimean region of Ukraine. The FAA says it took the action due to Russia's unilateral and illegal action to assert control over Crimean airspace, rating the potential for conflicting air traffic control instructions from Ukrainian and Russian authorities. The FAA also warned that the situation could result a civil aircraft being misidentified as a threat and engaged by air defence forces of one of the countries. But Malaysia Airlines' flight 17 went down about 200 miles outside of the FAA-restricted zone. The FAA says US air carriers are now voluntarily avoiding all air space near the Russia-Ukraine border. David Schaper, NPR News.

 

Israel has begun a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip. This marks a significant shift from the ten days of an air war which killed one Israeli and more than 200 Palestinians. From Gaza city, NPR's Emily Harris has more. 

 

The invasion started with intense Israeli fire, particularly in north and east. One person living near Gaza's eastern border with Israel said the electricity was out, but it looked like daytime  from Israeli flares and explosions. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military's focus is to destroy weapons and infrastructure used by militants in the Gaza Strip, especially hidden tunnels that could be used to hide weapons or get inside Israel. A spokesman for the main militant group Hamas said Israel will pay a price for ground war.  Emily Harris, NPR News, Gaza.

 

Software maker Microsoft is wielding the jobs cutting acts in a big way. The company announcing what it's calling its single biggest ever lay-off with elimination around 18,000 positions, roughly 14% of its overall workforce.  Microsoft says many of the job (cuts) are being cut or jobs are being lost while there's a lot of the overlap for the company's Nokia mobile device business.

 

On Wall Street, the Dow was down 161 points.

 

This is NPR.

 

A judge in the Florida Keys has moved today to overturn that state's constitutional ban on same sex marriage. Move by the judge coming after a legal challenge by six gay couples who said the law effectively has relegated them to second class citizenship, ruling in the case was issued by a Circuit Court Judge Luis M. Garcia, would only apply to the Florida county  that covers the Keys. She contends Florida-voter-approved ban on same sex marriage violates US constitution's guarantee of equal protection under the law. 

 

Members of Congress are heading home for the weekend, but still seem far apart on President Obama's budget request to deal with thousands of unaccompanied children crossing the Mexican border, NPR's S.V. Date reports it's a big sticking point and over what to do about a 2008 law that many Republicans believe has helped cause the problem.

 

The law gives minors a legal review prior to being deported. It was passed six years to protect children from human trafficking. And the Democrats who control the Senate want to keep possible changes to it separate from the money request. Republican House Speaker John Boehner says that makes little sense. 

 

I don't know how Congress can send more money to the border to begin to mitigate the problem. If you don't do something about the 08 law that's being abused. And it's being abused.

 

Boehner says he is still awaiting a recommendation from a Republican working group studying the problem and continues to hope solution can pass both chambers in the coming weeks. S.V. Date, NPR News, the Capitol.

 

North Carolina based Duke Energy has reportedly finished cleaning up coal ash spilled in the area of the Dan River from one of its plants. According to Environmental Protection Agency Duke has dredged up about 3,000 tons of the ash. Duke estimated as much as 39,000 tons of coal ash was allowed to spill into the river.

 

I'm Jack Speer, NPR News, in Washington.