Seriouser: Why are any airlines flying over contested/disputed areas where an international conflict is taking place?

Prior to the Malaysian Airlines jet's shoot down, pro-Russian separatist leader Igor Strelkov posted on the Russian social networking site, VKontakte, claiming responsibility for shooting down a Ukrainian AN-26 transport plane. However, after news emerged of the downed Malaysian Airlines plane, Strelkov's page appears to have been scrubbed of the post.
Strelkov's page claimed responsibility for taking down a Ukrainian jet and posted and accompanying video that shows smoke rising from what is now believed to be the crash site of the passenger jet. Below is a screengrab of Strelkov's VKonkakte page that includes the post claiming responsibility for the downed transport plane. That post now appears to have been removed.

After reports emerged that a passenger jet had been shot down, Strelkov said that his forces were not responsible and that they lacked the capability to shoot down a plane flying at that altitude. The plane was reportedly flying at an altitude of about 33,000 feet.
Meanwhile, additional images are emerging of the crash site, including the horrifying image below that was carried by Russian television:


Update: 12:45 p.m.
Reports are emerging from eastern Ukraine that Russian forces may have shot down a Malaysia Airlines jet near the Ukrainian-Russian border. Malaysia Airlines has confirmed that they have lost contact with the jet, a Boeing 777 that was travelling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 295 people on board.
According to a report carried by the Interfax news service, citing unnamed sources in the aviation industry, the plane was shot down.

Guess Lufthansa was still using it up til now with this tweet:
JUST IN: Lufthansa Airlines rerouting flights around Ukraine in light of Malaysian Airlines incident - @ABCaviation

Slightly more seriouser: This business will get out of control! It will get out of control and we'll be lucky to live through it!

my grandma is the only person i know that watches fox news lol. that isnt an exaggeration either.

Just watched the movie for the 10000th time yesterday.

Malaysian Deputy Foreign Minister Hamzah Zainuddin said the next day in Malaysia that the foreign ministry would be working closely with the Russian and Ukrainian governments in regards to the incident.

Netherlands Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte stated "I am deeply shocked by the dramatic news regarding the crash of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur over Ukrainian grounds". He further announced that he would interrupt his holiday to coordinate the Dutch response. Dutch government buildings will fly the flag half-mast on 18 July.

Ukraine Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko vowed support for a Dutch probe into the crash, which he called an "act of terrorism". He reportedly offered condolences for the air disaster in a telephone conversation with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

United States American President Barack Obama said, "The U.S. will offer any assistance we can to determine what happened and why. As a country our thoughts and prayers are with all the families of the passengers, wherever they call home." Vice President Joe Biden said the plane appeared to have been deliberately "blown out of the sky", and vowed U.S. assistance for the investigation into the crash.

Australia Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said that if the incident was proven to be a shoot-down, it would be a crime and the perpetrators would be brought to justice. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs said the incident was a huge tragedy and that any Australians who were concerned about family members' wellbeing should try to contact them directly. It also said it was awaiting confirmation on the number of Australian passengers on board.

Belgium Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo said "On behalf of the Belgian government, he expressed his sincere condolences to the families and friends of the many victims of the flight of Malaysia Airlines. His thoughts are paying particular to the five Belgian victims, their families and friends as stood on his statement issued in Friday. He also expressed deep sympathy to the Dutch people and the Dutch authorities. Di Rupo wants "full clarity comes over the exact circumstances of this tragedy and those who are responsible should be quickly identified and brought to justice".

United Kingdom British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was "shocked and saddened by the Malaysian air disaster". The United Kingdom has requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council.

Canada Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was "shocked and saddened" to learn about the crash, and said that "Canada stands ready to provide whatever support it can to assist authorities in determining the cause of the crash.

Germany German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a statement she is "shocked" by the crash and its possible circumstances, and demanded a "swift, independent" inquiry.

Indonesia Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims, on behalf of the people and the government. Yudhoyono also stated that the aircraft downing is "a violation against international law and the law of war". He asked that whoever shot down the aircraft be punished unequivocally, and offered to help with the investigation.

New Zealand New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said that the event was a "terrible tragedy". He also stated that the New Zealand government's "thoughts are with the families and friends of those involved."

Philippines Philippines Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a statement "Malacañang offer our sincerest condolences to the families of all the victims, recognising full well the enormity of their loss. At this difficult time, we stand with them in solidarity as one people and one country".

Russia Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his deepest condolences to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, the Malaysian people and the relatives of the victims. He said responsibility for the crash rests with "the country in whose airspace the plane was in when it crashed", and that "the disaster wouldn't happen if the military action in south-east of Ukraine was not reenabled".

http://time.com/...ers-killed-aids2014-mh17/

I had a friend/co worker on that plane with his gf.....

The fact that Ukrainian separatists have already removed 38 bodies from the scene and are protecting the scene refusing the dutch investigation teams that want to get on site.

a smart human of the 20 century does not take his facts from TV ( be it russian or USA ).
He takes his/her news from some sort of neutral media / internet.

I don't usually but FauxNews was all over the '23' americans feared dead.

what better place than the internet :P