this is bbc news. we will have the headlines at the top of the hour. straight after this programme. this was once a place full of tourists. but when the pandemic came to cuba, the country lost a vital source of income. medicine and food shortages sparked unprecedented demonstrations against the government. and the biggest exodus to the us since the 1959 cu ban revolution. many put their lives in the hands of human smugglers, on dangerous journeys across central america.

others took a shorter, but treacherous, route. the nearest point to cuba is about 70 miles. the south florida straits can turn deadly very quickly. there are sharks, there are jellyfish, storms can pop up unexpectedly. hundreds have died or gone missing. this is the story of three cubans who risked everything to leave their island for florida.

in 2019, elian was living in varadero with his wife and daughter. it was the mecca of tourism for communist—run cuba. for years, he had been teaching diving and water sports to tourists. with a strict trading

embargo imposed by the usa since the 1960s, tourism brought a vital source of foreign currency to cuba, around 12 billion us dollars in 2019. for 30 years, cuba was supported by its communist allies, the soviet union. but when the socialist bloc collapsed in the 1990s, cubans faced a daily struggle to survive. elian had recovered from bowel cancer, but after surgery, he could not source enough colostomy bags.

but complaining against the cuban regime was difficult. growing up in santiago de cuba, 22—year—old celimar learned this from a young age. celimar�*s father was a dissident. that had repercussions for the whole family. the impact of the lockdown, the lack of tourism and us trade sanctions meant cuba was plunged into its deepest crisis in decades.

chanting in spanish on 11th july 2021, protests swept across the streets of cuba. some of the largest anti—government demonstrations since 1959. alejandro was a soldier

living in havana. it wasn't long before protesters say events turned violent.

cubans who wanted to leave the country face travel the country faced travel

restrictions abroad. but four months after the protests, nicaragua, a long—standing ally, unexpectedly lifted the requirement for visiting cubans to have a visa. it was the chance celimar had been waiting for. celimar knew if she could get to nicaragua, gangs of smugglers would transport her illegally across central america to the us, where her father was living. celimar was travelling on her own.

but along the route, she joined thousands of other cubans and migrants from all over central america. within months, it would become cuba's largest exodus since 1959. back in cuba, the situation

was more than elian could bear. for the sake of his family's future, he decided he had to go. he chose to do it in the way he knew best. elian was going to attempt a 90—mile crossing on his beloved windsurf board.

alejandro didn't have a passport, so he couldn't fly to nicaragua. he managed to sell his motorbike to buy an inflatable kayak. but he had never been out at sea further than the beach.

alejandro spent the day on the beach, practising with the kayak. and then, when it got dark, it was time to go.

in the skies above, the us coast guard were patrolling the waters. as 2022 continued, they noticed a rapid increase in cuban migrant boats. cubans who could not afford to pay smugglers to traffick them through nicaragua were taking to the sea in record numbers. for my aircrews, it was not uncommon to see six, seven, eight, nine contacts in a single five—hour patrol in the south florida straits. the vessels are often home—made, with tarps, wood, straps, car engines, lawnmower engines, no engines, handmade paddles with a piece of plywood nailed to a broomstick.

unfortunately, what we see is while many do make it, you know, hundreds still die trying to make it, and that's the hardest part about ourjob. down on the water, elian was now stranded because of a lack of wind. his situation was becoming more and more dangerous.

elian�*s fear of having to spend the night on the surfboard was becoming real.

from nicaragua, celimar had travelled from honduras to guatemala and then into mexico. in mexico, celimar was hidden in a safe house controlled by the cartels.

after windsurfing for nearly two days, elian was drifting closer to florida. but he had pushed his body to its limits. elian was rescued just after sunset. he received urgent

medical care. after three days, alejandro thought he could see lights on the horizon. as the sun rose, he realised it was a hotel.

after 13 days on the road, celimar was getting close to the us border. but there was one final challenge. the notorious rio bravo. because of the strong currents, many migrants have died on this crossing. all and celimar was trying to cross in winter.

at the start of 2023, following a record influx of migrants, the us government took radical action. in texas, troops were deployed to the mexican border. and a new parole programme was introduced — cubans who entered the us illegally would not be eligible to apply. with elian already in florida, his wife and daughter had been making the dangerous crossing by land over nicaragua. they made it over the us border just before the new system came into effect. all three of them are now

applying for asylum. celimar is now also living in florida with herfather. she's also applying for leave to remain. but under the new application system, cubans trying to come to the us now need prior authorisation. those who attempt a journey like hers risk being deported.

alejandro hopes one day to bring his son to the us, via a safer route, through a new parole programme. but the new programme is estimated to have received nearly 400,000 cuban applications already for limited places. as long as the economic crisis in cuba remains, it's feared more will risk their lives trying to leave the island.

hello. sunday will be getting off to a cold start in most places and it promises to be a rather chilly day. but it won't be as windy as it was on saturday and there won't be as many showers. high pressure building its way in from the west. notice the isobars, still quite tightly packed across northern and eastern parts of scotland. still quite windy here. and a weak frontal system bringing cloud and some showery rain into the north of scotland. something wintry for a time up over higher ground, although much of that will turn back to rain. southern scotland, northern ireland,

england and wales having a fine day after what will be a cold and, in places, frosty start. long spells of sunshine. just a few showers around the coasts. still quite blustery in the north—east of scotland, but lighter winds elsewhere. temperatures — 7 degrees in lerwick, 1a for st helier. elsewhere, generally, 10 to 13 degrees. now, sunday night will be another cold one. light winds in most places. some mist and fog patches could well develop. a little bit breezy in the south and in the north. just the odd shower in the north of scotland and also perhaps in the south—east of england. but in—between, temperatures dropping close to, or even below freezing, with our area of high pressure still with us, but low pressure trying to squeeze in from the south and also from the north. so it is northern and southern parts that will turn a little bit windy as we go through the day on monday. in—between, light winds, early mist and fog clearing, some good spells of sunshine.

but brisk winds in the north of scotland, maybe the odd shower here. also, maybe the odd shower in southern england, where it will also turn quite windy. that strong wind also affecting the channel islands. temperatures — generally, 11, 12 or 13 degrees in most places. now, on tuesday, i think the winds will ease a little bit in the north, but conversely, they'll pick up across the south, turning breezy across more of england and wales. and some showery rain, perhaps, across the channel islands, the south—west of england. but notice, temperatures rising a little bit, up to around 15 or 16 degrees. a sign of things to come. it is going to turn much more unsettled through midweek. weather systems pushing up from the south, some potentially quite heavy bursts of rain. but with southerly winds, temperatures climbing easily to around 16 degrees. could get a little warmer than that in some places. but we will see some outbreaks of quite heavy rain.

live from washington. this is bbc news.

israel masses troops near gaza as it prepares for the next phase of its military operation to, quote, wipe out hamas. the bbc confirms young children were among those killed yesterday in an air strike on vehicles leaving northern gaza along an israeli—designated route south. and president biden speaks to the israeli and palestinian leaders as the us steps up efforts to contain the escalating conflict. hello. i'm carl nasman. israel's military says that its forces are ready for the next stage of the war — and that it is planning an attack by land, air and sea.

in a statement, a spokesperson said that the goal of the