on our broadcast here tonight, air scare. the faa has taken the rare step of banning all u.s. flights to and from israel after a rocket from gaza gets way too close. also, the flight risk around the world. our look at how many commercial flights are forced to fly over or fly around war zones below. a game changer for football in america, the new rules tonight governing tackling, as the game may be about to change from schools all the way up through the nfl because of head injuries. and the birthday boy. what a first year it's been. "nightly news" begins now. good evening, for the first time in history, the faa is prohibiting u.s. airlines from

flying into or out of tel aviv's airport. and once again here tonight, the news has to do with commercial planes flying over war zones. this comes at the height of the summer tourist season, after a hamas rocket landed near the airport just today. while some airlines are still flying into israel, among them, an israeli airline. adding this element of danger to an airport may be the biggest victory hamas has scored thus far. we have two reports tonight. tom costello has been looking into how many flights are traveling over conflict zones. kate snow is at the airport in tel aviv with some frustrated american travelers. kate, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening, from tel aviv. behind me, the middle of the night here, yet there are a lot of passengers trying to find a way out on any of the airlines that are still serving america and europe. after the faa decision today, air canada, air france, luftansa

and klm all followed suit, deciding the war in gaza had simply gotten too close to the runways. this is what got the airlines attention. this morning at 10:05 local time, a rocket lands within a couple miles of the airport in tel aviv. most of the time the military is blocking incoming rockets from gaza, today that wasn't the case. three houses badly damaged. aria had just left to run errands five minutes before, now his girl's home is in ruins. this is your daughter's home? luckily none of us were home, he tells me. look what they've done, she says, i wish they'd all die. two israelis, the sound of sirens had become commonplace, when american and european air carriers started cancelling their flights hours later, people here were surprised. delta flight 468 from new york to tel aviv with 290 people on board was the first to divert to paris.

american quickly followed in suspending tel aviv bounds flights. at 12:15 eastern, the faa ordered all u.s. airlines not to fly into or out of tel aviv, for at least 24 hours. >> some of the rockets that hamas is firing come too close for comfort to the airport for the passengers. >> reporter: the israeli transportation minister suggested the faa was overreacting, claiming the airport is safe for takeoffs and landings. aria is trying to get home to brooklyn. given the daily bloodshed in this conflict, these are small problems. she's trying to keep some perspective. kate snow, nbc news, tel aviv. this is tom costello in washington, the faa decision to temporarily ban u.s. flights into and out of tel aviv, comes as the remains lie scattered over several ukrainian fields. shot down by a missile. just three days earlier, a

ukrainian transport plane was shot down while flying at 21,000 feet. the ukrainian government had declared a no fly zone up to 32,000 feet. flight 17 was at 33,000 feet. flying along designated commercial flight path l-980 when it was shot out of the sky. the missile can reach to 72,000 feet, well into the stratosphere, far higher than any commercial aircraft can fly. other carriers did fly the same route that day. >> there should have been some cooperation and coordination between the airlines, the industry as a whole, and the government that oversee the airspace that turned out to be very dangerous. >> eastern ukraine is one of a handful of hostile or no fly zones. the faa has mapped out around the world. determining whether to fly over them is in part a risk calculation. do the combatants below have weapons that can threaten a plane? three days after flight 17 went

down, malaysia flight 4 flew to london, right over war torn syria, a no fly zone for u.s. carriers. late today, flight radar showed eastern ukraine was empty of commercial flights, with a steady stream of planes into and out of europe. tracking over turkey and flying south along the iraqi/iranian border. >> no two conflict areas are alike. it depends what weapons are on the ground. airlines have to do some very fact specific analysis about where their planes can safely fly. >> malaysia airlines says it's not an intelligence agency, it insists it was flying through ukraine along an internationally accepted air route that was open. brian? >> tom costello, our d.c. newsroom, before that kate snow in keltel aviv. speaking of the dangers of flying through a war zone to the situation on the ground in

ukraine. as bodies of about 200 people who perished on board that malaysia airlines aircraft are finally on a journey back to the netherlands, there are concerns about what's happening to the evidence back at the crash scene. nbc's keir simmons is in donestk for us tonight. >> reporter: good evening, brian. u.s. intelligence officials believe russian backed separatists fired the missile they say brought down that plane, they can't prove it or provide any direct link to russia. the investigation is underway. there have only been monitors in this region. now there are experts here. six days after flight mh-17 crashed, investigators finally reached the scene today. 160 miles away, the bodies of the dead arrived by rail to a safe area of ukraine. on board, the remains of around 200 of the 298 people who died. the task now, to find out what happened to the plane they were on. the flight was cruising at 33,000 feet, flying at about 534

miles an hour. it was over southeastern ukraine, not far from the russian border, an area held by pro russian separatists, where officials say a missile was launched from in or near the town of snoznia. the missile exploded as it is designed to do. creating a crowd of shrapnel, tearing into the aircraft and bringing it down. this side of the plane has clearly been punctured from the outside. >> it's consistent with a large warhead detonating in close proximity to the aircraft. >> reporter: this satellite image shows the main debris field. other parts of the aircraft were scattered over at least a six mile area. the nose of the plane, the

cockpit and the first class cabin all came down together. three and a half miles away, the tail landed almost in tact. more evidence that the plane almost certainly broke up in the air. questions remain, the black boxes may help answer them. they were handed over last night in a deal the malaysian prime minister himself negotiated with the rebel leader. but tonight, western monitors in the region complain that some of the wreckage has been moved and altered. meaning vital clues may have been lost. brian, tonight u.s. officials say they believe the plane was shot down by mistake, by rebels, who didn't realize it was a passenger plane. meanwhile, those black boxes have been passed by the malaysians to the dutch for analysis. brian? >> keir simmons live in the ukraine tonight. thanks. we want to return to the middle east for a moment to bring you a late report that shows what happened to our chief foreign correspondent there today. what it's like to be on the other end of this withering

attack on gaza that the israelis have been carrying out since the rocketing. today nbc's richard engel rode along with the medics there, who are quickly becoming among the most dangerous job holders in the world. >> reporter: much of the fighting is now concentrated just east of gaza city. in a poor district. palestinian ambulances can't get to the many wounded and dead there. israeli troops have fired at them when they tried. instead, ambulances wait in relatively safer areas for the injured to be carried to them. ambulances are supposed to be protected in conflict zones. not here, at least ten have been hit so far. israel has also bombed two palestinian hospitals. israel says hamas is for rocket launching and storage sites. and ambulances are weapons. we didn't see any of that today.

between emergency calls, red crescent medics checked their supplies. he says he can't go to the area where he's needed most. we get calls that there are injured there, and they're bleeding to death he said, but we can't go in. last time he did manage to get in, this is what he found. first a face like a corpse. then she moved and breathed. the 24-year-old had been buried under the debris of her home for two days before they rescued her. >> this is where she is right now, in critical condition, badly burned and appears to be slipping in and out of consciousness. a doctor tells us all of her family was killed. they don't expect her to survive. richard engel, nbc news, gaza city. from that awful situation

overseas to the major story we're covering in this country tonight. an urgent situation continuing in the pacific northwest. we have 19 major wildfires burning out of control. charring nearly a million acres already. the most serious of all now is the largest wildfire in the history of washington state. nbc's jacob rascone is in washington again for us tonight. jacob, good evening. >> good evening, day after day we come across home after home reduced to this, for some, nothing is left, but the memory of what used to be as we get a clearer picture of the magnitude of this disaster. tonight is a different firefight. a blanket of light rain, the so-called carlton complex fire losing its fuel. containment lines building up fast. >> this is my mother-in-law's room, kitchen, living room, dining room. >> the firefight is over.

the crump family lost everything. >> i cried. i really did. i tried not to, but i did. >> reporter: the timing could not have been worse. kasia crump is eight months pregnant. >> what's the news? >> looking good. strong heartbeat and everything. >> reporter: after it happened, this is the only place to stay. >> at least we have a mattress not an air mattress and we're not sleeping on the ground. >> reporter: the neighborhood centerpiece for decades. >> everybody just flocked to this place. >> reporter: reduced to ash and rubble, just like the house next door. >> this was a garage, this is my 4-year-old son's bike. >> parker, leann and their son moved in last november. >> i knew there was not going to be anything, but -- there's really not anything. >> where there are homes there is no power. hundreds of destroyed polls and lines will take at least a month to replace. >> how sorry we all are and i am. >> reporter: a rally cry from the mayor who speaks from

experience. >> i myself, and family members ville lost their homes, and i just want you all to know that we, as a community, are going to pull together and make this town even better. >> reporter: back at the crump home, a victory for little trinity. >> what is it? >> bear. >> reporter: the family not ready to give up just yet. >> we're a strong family and we pull together. >> reporter: tonight we've learned the break in the weather may not be much of a break at all. fire crews warning residents about possible landslides and flash floods, expecting heavy rain and thunderstorms in the next couple days. >> jacob, our hearts go out to those folks, thanks. still ahead for us tonight on this broadcast, the new safety rules announced that could be a game changer for football in america.

limits on tackling going into effect in more and more places. a mystery here in new york and another security breach at an american landmark. my name is michael,

i'm 55 years old and i have diabetic nerve pain. the pain was terrible. my feet hurt so bad. it felt like hot pins and needles coming from the inside out of my skin. when i did go see the doctor, and he prescribed lyrica. it helped me. [ male announcer ] it's known that diabetes damages nerves. lyrica is fda-approved to treat diabetic nerve pain. lyrica is not for everyone. it may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. or, swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, changes in eyesight, including blurry vision, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling or skin sores from diabetes. common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. having reduced pain is great

and i'm grateful for it. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about lyrica today. it's specific treatment for diabetic nerve pain. tonight in the most populous state of the union, there are new safety rules for kids who play high school football in the state of california. specifically, restrictions on tackling. as in the number of minutes players are allowed to play tackle football before and during the season. it's all about limiting head injuries, it's bound to affect the sport all the way up to the nfl. parents of players just want an even playing field. we get our report tonight from nbc's ron mott. >> reporter: football's hardknocks just softened up significantly after governor brown signed into law a measure restricting how often and how long kids can tackle one another outside the games. >> the spirit of the rule is to keep kids safe. and eliminate contact. >> reporter: the rule restricts

full contact practices to just two sessions every week, and no more than 90 minutes each, during the official playing season, including preseason. no contact at all during the offseason. it was hailed as a safety first rule by many to limit concussions. one father of a football player worries it will leave his son and others ill equipped on game day. >> i think it's putting my son in jeopardy. as an athlete, you want to be prepared for what the conditions are that you'll be performing in the game. >> reporter: 37 other states have imposed some form of restriction even at one of the most competitive youth cultures in the country. in texas, the rules are even stricter than california's new law, just one 90 minute contact is allowed each week. the rule has left doubt among ex stars like brett favre. whether the risks are worth it.

>> if i had a son, i would be real leery of him playing. >> reporter: california's move is the latest sign that lawmakers plan to make america's game a safer one at every level from nfl to peewee and pop warner. nbc news, new york. we're back in a moment with the strange aren't beatles are in the news tonight. what they get from alaska, they think salmon and energy. but the energy bp produces up here creates something else as well: jobs all over america. engineering and innovation jobs. advanced safety systems & technology. shipping and manufacturing. across the united states, bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. when we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. that's not a coincidence. it's one more part of our commitment to america. ever since we launched snapshot,

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