Bob orr is in washington with the latest on this. Bob . Reporter scott, as you say, u. S. Officials now strongly suspect the jetliner was brought down by some kind of surfacetoair missile but so far they tell us its not clear who fired it or more importantly whether the passenger jet was being deliberately targeted. Some of the answers will ultimately come through intelligence but some will have to come through wreckage in the planes black boxes. The trail of debris clearly shows the jet began breaking up in midair. Wreckage and bodies are spread over several miles along the flight path and that would be consistent with the plane being ripped apart by aerodynamic forces after the aircraft was penetrated by some kind of high explosive projectile like a missile. Large sections of the jet have been recovered now away from the primary crash site. At the impact crater itself, the wreckage is more pulverized and charred, suggesting the plane hit the ground at a high rate of speed and engulfed in a very large fire. The fuel tanks in the wings were heavily loaded for an 11hour flight from amsterdam to kuala lumpur, so a lot of fuel was available. Its not clear who will take part in the investigation but ukraine needs to bring in expertise perhaps from the u. S. Or great britain. Aviation experts and fire experts will have to examine the wreckage to look for residue of missile propellant and evidence the skin was punctured inward by a highspeed impact. Its imperative the investigators need to look at the black boxes because they should confirm the pilots were caught unaware by a missile strike. Big questions Going Forward, who did it and why. Pelley do you think the United States will be part of the investigation on the ground . Reporter i know theyre willing to do that, scott. They have some of the best experts in the world, but they have to be invited in by ukraine goftd. Its important that whatever the finding is that its factual, credible and accepted. The u. S. Experts could add that kind of power. Pelley the u. S. Is, of course, supporting the ukraine government but the crash site is in rebelheld territory. Bob orr, thank you very much. Going now to National Security correspondent david martin at the pentagon. David, what do we know and what do we not know . Reporter pentagon officials are confident that a missile shot the plane down. What they dont know, what kind of missile, where it was fired from, and who fired it. Pelley david, what is the evidence that it was in fact a missile . Reporter well, theres evidence of a midair explosion simply because the debris was scattered over a large area, but on top of that, u. S. Intelligence was able to detect the missile in flight, and also a radar that was tracking the airliner. You add those three together, and it comes up with a pretty convincing case that this was a shootdown. Pelley so there is evidence, as you understand it, of the missile in flight . Reporter thats right. Indications of the track of the missile as it went up toward the airliner. Pelley and why are the ukrainian rebels, who are supported by russia, the most likely suspects in this . Reporter well, i think everybody assumes, at least for now, that no one had a credible motive to shoot down a civilian airliner. So if this was a mistake, the separatists are the ones most likely to make a mistake, because unlike ukraine and russia, governments which have access to International Flight data, which would have told them about the airliner, the separatists probably wouldnt have known there was an airliner there. Pelley david martin reporting for us at the pentagon. David, thank you very much. Joining us now are juan zarate, our cbs news National Security analyst, and our state Department Correspondent margaret brennan. Margaret, all of this puts Vladimir Putin in a difficult position. He and his government have been supporting the rebels, both in terms of rhetoric and military assistance for months now. Reporter they have. The Obama Administration has believed that from the beginning the strategy has been directed from the very top of the russian government, from president putin to try to make the young, very westernleaning Ukrainian Government look inept, look like they cant control the country. Theyve accused putin of helping to fund not only paramilitary groups, but sending in unmarked agents, referred to as sort of little green men, basically skilled agents who can teach some of these paramilitaries how to use heavy equipment. Also sending in troops to the border to influence things, and financially squeeze ukraine to make them more dependent on russia. So the strategy up to this point has been lets try to make it costly to putin. The United States and europe have put sanctions on him and his government, but theyve punished him, they have not deterred the russian government from this strategy of continuing to support these paramilitaries. Pelley and whatever missile this was, it had to be sophisticated, operated by trained troops, because the airliner flying at 33,000 feet at 500 miles an hour. Thats not an easy target to hit. Juan, how does this change the landscape of this conflict that weve seen growing over these months . Reporter scott, i think this is a game changer in three ways. One, it internationalizes this conflict in a way we havent seen to date. This isnt just a conflict between russia and the ukraine, something confined to the east of that country or crimea. This is a flight, civilian flight, from europe to asia, affecting numerous nationalities and countries. So in some ways it makes it a more Material International conflict. It also puts president putin, and i think the russians, on the defensive here. Its not only an exposure of their lies in terms of their support, but it demonstrates that theyve enabled and armed militias ontheground that at best they cant control. This puts him on the defensive. Lastly, it changes the nature of the diplomacy. Weve relied on the russians to try to contain these forces on the ground. If they cant contain the forces, if theyve unleashed them in a way that putin and moscow cant control, that changes the dynamics and we may be facing escalation. Pelley margaret, what happens next in your estimation with regard to american diplomacy on this . Reporter the u. S. Has been trying to stop the flow of fighters, coming in with different agendas from russia into this eastern part of ukraine. Thats a top item on the agenda. Shut that down, start to get control over fighters on the ground. But what it also does, for the new ukrainian president , poroshenko, it perhaps allows him to take the gloves off. Hes been restrained in having taken military action, then pulled back to try to go down the diplomatic front. Keep in mind, scott, i think in addition to change the diplomatic landscape in the region, there can be broader implications here, because this is not the only Foreign Policy challenge for the administration right now. They need russia strategically to negotiate with iran. They also need them for influence with syria as well. Pelley thank you very much. Margaret brennan, our state Department Correspondent, and juan zarate, our consultant on terrorism and international affairs. Thank you very much, both of you. Today, charlie rose interviewed former secretary of state hillary clinton. One of the topics that came up was the Malaysia Airlines crash. Reporter so what does the United States do if theres clear indication and clear evidence that it was russian separatists and perhaps using weapons from russia . I think that the first question is what does europe do. I think the United States has been very clear in both its criticism of russia and putin. If there is evidence linking russia to this, that should inspire the europeans to do much more on three counts. One, toughen their own sanctions. Make it very clear, there has to be a price to pay. Number two, immediately accelerate efforts and announce they are doing so to find alternatives to gaspram. And thirdly do more in concert with us to support the ukrainians, and to put putin on notice hes gone too far and were not going to stand idly by. Pelley there will be more of this extremely timely interview, the interview with hillary clinton, tomorrow on cbs this morning. Chesley sullenberger is one of the most experienced Airline Pilots in the world. The former u. S. Airways captain who made that famous Emergency Landing on the hudson river, hes now our cbs news aviation and safety expert. Sully, airlines from various countries, including the United States, were still flying through this airspace above the war zone. Should that airspace have been closed before now . Reporter scott, the investigators in the next weeks and months will be looking at that, and many other questions. Is there sufficient coordination and sharing of information, not only about safety issues, but about security threats. The mere presence of a surface toair missile of this performance level is a game changer and a real threat. I expect that there will be improvements Going Forward in how not only Safety Information is shared but how evidence based, intelligencebased risk information is given to not only airlines but to pilots when they plan flights. Pelley aircraft that have been shot down there recently have been shot down at much lower altitudes with shoulder fired missiles. This is a big change from what they had seen before. What can the International FlyingCommunity Learn from all of this . Reporter i think thats going to be much of what the investigation reveals, but in the meantime we shouldnt wait. When there is merely the presence of a surfacetoair weapon of this caliber, it creates great pause to those who might consider flying over that area. Pelley sully sullenberger, thank you very much. Now to another major story tonight. Israeli troops have now launched a Ground Invasion of gaza. This follows 10 days of air attacks. Palestinian militants have fired hundreds of unguided rockets into israel, killing one israeli civilian, but israel responded with air strikes that have killed 240 palestinians. Holly williams is in gaza for us tonight. Reporter israel is pounding the gaza strip tonight in the heaviest bombardment weve seen since this escalation began. As its happening, the israeli media is reporting that tens of thousands of Israeli Soldiers have crossed into the gaza strip. Israel has been threatening a ground offensive for days, calling up 55,000 reservists, massing troops and moving cool lawmakers of tanks to the border. It seems as if the offensive will be limited, at least initially, and target tunnels used by Palestinian Militants to infiltrate israel. The Israeli Military says it foiled an attack by 13 militants overnight trying to sneak into israel, killing at least one of them with an air strike on the mouth of that tunnel. Israel says its that attack, along with palestinian militant rocket fire during what was supposed to be a brief humanitarian ceasefire today, that forced it to act to defend its own citizens. We talked this evening with a spokesman for hamas, the militant group that controls the gaza strip, and vowed to make israel pay dearly for sending troops into the gaza strip. Holly williams, cbs news, gaza. Pelley in california two bank robbers and a hostage are killed in a fierce gun battle, and the challenge of conducting a crash investigation in a war zone, when the cbs evening news continues. [ heart beating ] [ female announcer ] the internet gets more exciting the faster it goes. Thats why, coming soon, xfinity will double the Internet Speed on two of our most popular plans. Xfinity continues to innovate, bringing you the fastest, most reliable internet, period. [ heart beating ] xfinity internet from comcast. Double the speed. [ heart beats ] pelley in stockton, california, a mother left her daughter in the car yesterday while she went into the bank. Minutes later, the police say the woman was taken hostage as the bank was being robbed, and she got caught up in a car chase and shootout with police. Carter evans has the story. Gunfire gunfire reporter the hourlong car chase ended when police surrounded the three alleged bank robbers and a hostage in a stolen suv. Keith burgad took cover while on his cell phones. I counted ability 50, the Police Showed up, and gunfire started. Like Chinese New Year going crazy. Reporter how many shots . At least a thousand. Reporter the chaos began at this bank after alarm was tripped. Two female customers and a teller were taken hostage. They were fired with handguns and rifles and ammunition strapped to the body. Jose maldonado was across the street. Od they got into the car and they couldnt shoot at them because they were so close to the hostages. Te reporter a running 35mile gun battle followed through three towns. Homes and cars riddled with bullets. The two tellers were jumped or pushed from the suv. Police chief eric jones says the customer misty hold singh was used as a human shield. In over two decades of law enforcement, i have never seen or experienced this type of total disregard for human life. I believe there definitely was a goal of killing other people including our police officers. Reporter singh and two gunman were killed. Jaime ramos is in custody. Police say his accomplices were gang members. Prosecutors say the suspects intended to take hostages and the two survivors are in the hospital tonight recovering from gunshot wounds. Pelley the woman killed is the woman who left her child in the car as she went into the bank. Was there any connection to the previous robbery at this bank . Reporter thats something the police are looking into, scott. In fact, two robberies at this particular bank branch in the last two years under similar circumstances. Those robberies are unsolved. Pelley carter evans, thank you very much. Hot, windy conditions tonight fueling a wildfire in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State. Nearly 900 houses evacuated. The plume of smoke reached 25,000 feet in the air, the fire has grown to nearly 8 square miles and is not contained. Crews are stretched thin, fighting three fires in Washington State right now. Well, this was also big news for that state and for the country today. Microsoft announced the biggest layoff in its 39year history. 18,000 jobs are being cut, about 14 of microsofts workforce. Most of the cuts are in its nokia mobile device unit which microsoft acquired last year. Word also reached us today that guitarist Johnny Winter has died while on tour in switzerland. Winter was known for his long white hair and long blazing guitar riffs. He and his brother edgar winter grew up idolizing blues legends, including muddy waters and later produced waters albums. Johnny winter was 70. Elaine stritch died at her home in michigan today at 89. She was best remembered for her one woman show, Elaine Stritch at liberty, and for her role in the Stephen Sondheim show company. Stritch continued to work well into her 80s playing alec baldwins mother on 30 rock. What role will the u. S. Play in the flight 17 investigation . We will speak with a former chairman of the National Transportation safety board next. Its about twenty by twelve of these. So, we can measure, plan and install it for you. Yea, lets do that ikea. Professional Kitchen Services [ barks ] whoo mmm oh, yeah [ whistling ] [ male announcer ] discover your new orleans. Start exploring at followyournola. Com. [ woman ] and i love new orleans start exploring at followyournola. Com. Oh i knew i forgot something. Ill just do it now. Well, were boarding. No, ill use citi mobile. Takes two seconds, better safe than sorry right . Yeah who knows if well even get service on the islands . What no service . Seriously . No electricity, were going to make our own candles, were going to churn our own butter. Oh, we lost one. Cant leave a bag unattended. Bank from almost anywhere with the citi mobile app. To learn more visit citi. Com easierbanking woah, this kitchen is beautiful give him the tour. Let me show you softclose drawers, farm sink wheres my room . We had to take just a little bit for the kitchen. Because your kitchen dreams can be big. Ikea has it all. Pelley the wreckage of Malaysia Flight 17 is scattered over several miles in Eastern Ukraine. Evidence that might help confirm what happened to the plane, Mark Rosenker is the former chairman of the National Transportation tifety board. Mark, will the ntsb be involved in this investigation . Certainly they would like to, scott. It is critical that the ukrainians invite a number of agencies that are independent, globally recognized as professional aviation investigators so they can get in there to document the scene, to pick up all the evidence thats necessary to do a good investigation, do the analysis required, and then come up with the probable cause. Pelley the United States has good relations with the government of ukraine but the crash site is in rebelheld territory. It would be tough to get the investigators in there. Absolutely. And, frankly, if i were still running the agency, i would not go over there unless i had full assurances from both sides they could come, work safely and get back home. Pelley david martin from the pentagon was reporting there is evidence in the hands of u. S. Military intelligence that a missile was fired at the plane. Whats left to find