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A West Texas Children's Story

Set in the 1960s, a magical tale of two 12-year-olds embarking on an adventure to find new, cool parents and escape their neglected, overly adult existence. Set in the 1960s, a magical tale of two 12-year-olds embarking on an adventure to find new, cool parents and escape their neglected, overly adult existence. Set in the 1960s, a magical tale of two 12-year-olds embarking on an adventure to find new, cool parents and escape their neglected, overly adult existence.

• Brad Isaacs
• Cayden Boyd
• Lara Flynn Boyle
• Matthew Modine
• 20 User reviews
• 5 Critic reviews

• Ben Reynolds

• Ben's Mother

• Ben's Father

• Father in Diner
• (as John Cotugno)

• Cassie's Mother

• Cassie Kennington

• Sheriff LeClaire
• (as Michael Miller)
• Cassie's Father
• (as William Lawrence Allen)
• Truck Driver #1

• Truck Driver #2
• (as Boots Sutherland)

• Henderson's Wife

• Sheriff Brock

• Deputy Raymond Ward
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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• Trivia This feature film employed over 50 local New Mexicans.

Henderson : Do you, Ben...

Cassie : Benjamin Reynolds.

Henderson : Benjamin Reynolds, take this young woman...

Cassie : Cassie Kennington.

Henderson : [Henderson wipes eyes, takes off hat] Do both of you promise to treat each other with dignity and love until one or the other drops dead?

Cassie : I do.

[looks at Ben]

Ben : I do.

Henderson : [Henderson, Cassie, and Ben put their hands in the center and "break"] Well, looks like you're both married now.

Ben : [looks at Cassie, laughs nervously and grins] That's great.

[Henderson nods]

Cassie : [whispers] Oh, the ring.

[Ben gets a straightened paper clip and wraps it around her finger, then pats her hand]

Henderson : Congratulations to you both.

Cassie : Well, I feel good about this whole thing.

[to Henderson]

Cassie : How about you?

Henderson : [grins again] Yeah. I feel good about it.

[Cassie looks at Ben and their eyes meet]

Ben : [nervously] Uh, well, I don't have a lot to compare it to, but, uh, yeah...

Ben : I feel good.

Henderson : Oh and if you wanna kiss the bride, you can do that now, 'cause I forgot to say it.

• Soundtracks All Alone Am I Written by Arthur Altman , Manos Hatzidakis (as Manos Hadjidakis) and Jean Ioannidis Performed by Brenda Lee Courtesy of Universal Music Publishing

User reviews 20

• fernandoschiavi
• Apr 11, 2023
• How long is A West Texas Children's Story? Powered by Alexa
• June 6, 2008 (United States)
• United States
• West Texas Lullaby
• Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
• Thunder Bay Pictures
• West Texas New Mexico Films
• WolfGang Cinema
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $5,000,000 (estimated)

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 26 minutes
• Black and White

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Have Dreams, Will Travel (2007) Stream and Watch Online

Need to watch ' Have Dreams, Will Travel ' in the comfort of your own home? Discovering a streaming service to buy, rent, download, or watch the Brad Isaacs-directed movie via subscription can be a challenge, so we here at Moviefone want to do the heavy lifting. Below, you'll find a number of top-tier streaming and cable services - including rental, purchase, and subscription alternatives - along with the availability of 'Have Dreams, Will Travel' on each platform when they are available. Now, before we get into the various whats and wheres of how you can watch 'Have Dreams, Will Travel' right now, here are some details about the Thunder Bay Pictures drama flick. Released May 21st, 2007, 'Have Dreams, Will Travel' stars Cayden Boyd , AnnaSophia Robb , Val Kilmer , Heather Graham The movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 26 min, and received a user score of 74 (out of 100) on TMDb, which compiled reviews from 48 knowledgeable users. Curious to know what the movie's about? Here's the plot: "West Texas, in the 1960's. A tale of two 12-year-olds who embark on an adventure to find new parents in order to escape their unhappy and emotionally unsatisfying family life." .

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West Texas, in the 1960's. A tale of two 12-year-olds who embark on an adventure to find new parents in order to escape their unhappy and emotionally unsatisfying family life.

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Have Dreams, Will Travel

Smallscreen producer-writer Brad Isaacs makes a gratingly cutesy helming debut with "Have Dreams, Will Travel," a saccharine, 1961-set road pic involving a couple of unloved kids trekking from West Texas to Baltimore.

By Jay Weissberg

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Smallscreen producer-writer Brad Isaacs makes a gratingly cutesy helming debut with “Have Dreams, Will Travel ,” a saccharine, 1961-set road pic involving a couple of unloved kids trekking from West Texas to Baltimore. Isaacs’ script doesn’t know who it’s pitched to, forcing young thesps to recite lines that would sound outrageously phony in the mouths of adults, let alone children; an unconvincing plot full of stereotypes doesn’t help, either. Val Kilmer’s presence is a welcome relief, but dreams alone won’t be enough for pic to travel beyond DVD shelves.

Narration by 12-year-old Ben (Cayden Boyd) gets pic off to a wrong start, describing his unsatisfactory family life in the kind of homespun-philosophizing tone that would sound false even on “The Waltons.” Movie-obsessed Mom (Lara Flynn Boyle, also co-producing) flagrantly carries on with both men and women — this is supposed to be a kids’ movie? — while remote Dad (Matthew Modine) ignores his son, barely focusing on running their cheap diner.

Popular on Variety

Enter Cassie (AnnaSophia Robb), sole survivor of a car wreck that killed her parents. Ben’s parents agree to look after her until she can be sent to her grandma’s, but the maddeningly loquacious girl convinces Ben to run away with her instead and live with her cool aunt and uncle in Baltimore. First stop is a pig farm owned by Henderson (Kilmer), who bemusedly performs a wedding ceremony for Cassie, ever the fabulist, and Ben.

Back on the road, they’re picked up by beatniks in a multicolored bus who are supposed to be Jack Kerouac (Jack Hurst) and Allen Ginsberg (Argos MacCallum), but the episode feels more like a Partridge Family tribute. They finally arrive in Baltimore, welcomed by Cassie’s hip aunt (Heather Graham, wasted) and uncle (Dylan McDermott, ditto), who seem to live among Mink Stole’s castoffs.

Episodic nature of the plot, replete with potholes, could almost be forgiven if the dialogue were less stilted. As it is, to borrow from Mary McCarthy, the only believable words coming out of these kids’ mouths are “and” and “the.” It’s difficult to know whether the cheesy situations are meant to be funny, and the final, serious revelation is hardly groundbreaking news.

Kilmer at least has the acting chops to make something of his lines, though his role is barely there. Robb has been making a specialty of precocious kids, but she fared much better in “Bridge to Terabithia”; here, she spouts unbearably grand phrases and is directed to overplay every scene.Blandly attractive lensing has no discernible visual style, while Cassie’s poorly staged black-and-white nightmare scenes add no tension. The impossibly sweet ending looks as though it were lifted from a “The Music of Your Life” commercial, complete with walk on the beach.

• Production: A Boulevard Filmworks, the Mount Co., West Texas New Mexico Films, Whitsett Hill Entertainment, WolfGang Cinema production. (International sales: Reliant Pictures Intl., London.) Produced by Morna Ciraki, Arturo Muyshondt, Ryan Howe. Executive producers, Thom Mount, Polly Platt, Roger Howe. Co-producer, Lara Flynn Boyle. Directed, written by Brad Isaacs.
• Crew: Camera (color/B&W), Steve Mason; editors, Dede Allen, Robert Brakey; music, Glen Ballard; production designer, Bryce Perrin; art directors, David Baca, Delaney Marsh; costume designer, Mary Malin; sound (Dolby), Robert Seymour, Darryl L. Frank; associate producer, Diane Becker; line producer, Brian Campbell; assistant director, Matthew Vose Campbell; casting, Shari Rhodes, Toni Cobb Brock. Reviewed at Rome Film Festival (Alice in the City), Oct. 18, 2007 (Also in Cannes Film Festival -- market.) Running time: 85 MIN.
• With: With: AnnaSophia Robb, Cayden Boyd, Val Kilmer, Matthew Modine, Lara Flynn Boyle, Heather Graham, Dylan McDermott, Mary Evans, William Lawrence Allen, Ramsey Scott, Jerry Biggs, Susan Conklin, Ashley Fox Linton, Ethan Phillips, Jack Hurst, Argos MacCallum.

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Have Dreams, Will Travel

West Texas, in the 1960's. A tale of two 12-year-olds who embark on an adventure to find new parents in order to escape their unhappy and emotionally unsatisfying family life.

Brad Isaacs

Lara flynn boyle, heather graham, annasophia robb, cayden boyd.

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Have Dreams, Will Travel

West Texas, in the 1960's. A tale of two 12-year-olds who embark on an adventure to find new parents in order to escape their unhappy and emotionally unsatisfying family life.

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Movie trailer, where can you watch have dreams, will travel online, movie score.

May 21, 2007,

Brad Isaacs

Cayden Boyd, AnnaSophia Robb, Val Kilmer, Heather Graham, Lara Flynn Boyle, Matthew Modine

Drama, Romance

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Have dreams, will travel.

2007 Directed by Brad Isaacs

You're never too young to have a plan

West Texas, in the 1960's. A tale of two 12-year-olds who embark on an adventure to find new parents in order to escape their unhappy and emotionally unsatisfying family life.

Cayden Boyd AnnaSophia Robb Val Kilmer Heather Graham Lara Flynn Boyle Matthew Modine J.D. Garfield Johnny Cotugno Jeff Griffin Candace Campfield Mary Evans Mike Miller William Lawrence Allen Michael Clark Boots Southerland Ramsey Scott Stephen Root Toby Huss Sean Brosnan Jackson Hurst Argos MacCallum Tonea Stewart Jerry Biggs Brenda Isaacs Booth Susan Conklin Breanna Ellis Mathew Greer James Johnstone Ashley Fox Linton Show All… Geoffrey C. Martin Dylan McDermott Ethan Phillips

Director Director

Brad Isaacs

Producers Producers

Arturo Muyshondt Lara Flynn Boyle Stephen Hays Mark Davis Ryan Howe

Writer Writer

Editors editors.

Dede Allen Robert Brakey

Cinematography Cinematography

Steve Mason

Executive Producer Exec. Producer

Polly Platt

Production Design Production Design

Bryce Perrin

Title Design Title Design

Stunts stunts, composer composer, costume design costume design.

Thunder Bay Pictures

Releases by Date

21 may 2007, releases by country.

86 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

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Have Dreams, Will Travel 2007

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Have Dreams, Will Travel

Have Dreams, Will Travel (also known as West Texas Lullaby , A West Texas Children's Story , and Dream It Out Loud ) is a 2007 drama film set in the 1960s. Inspired by true events, it was written and directed by Brad Isaacs and stars AnnaSophia Robb and Cayden Boyd .

• 3 References
• 4 External links

Plot [ edit ]

Narrator Benjamin Reynolds (Cayden Boyd) lives with neglectful parents in 1960s west Texas: a mother (Lara Flynn Boyle) who is, as Ben states, "psychotically obsessed with movie stars to a point that defies explanation" and a father (Matthew Modine) who is overly obsessed with his boat. Ben explains how his father meets his mother under vulnerable circumstances and describes how his "folks never should have married, and they definitely should have never had a kid." "But they did, it happens. The randomness of life and all that." Ben goes on explaining how things got worse and worse due to his parents obsessions, his mother hiring handymen that resembled attractive movie stars to fix problems his father could have fixed but didn't because he was concentrating on constructing his boat.

One stormy night, there is a serious car wreck outside of the Reynolds' diner. Patrons assist in aiding the passengers but find only a single survivor, a young girl about Ben's age. Ben's parents agree to take in this girl, Cassie Kennington (AnnaSophia Robb), as she recuperates from her injuries and until she can be moved into her grandparents' home in Galveston. The first real glimpse at Cass is when Ben brings her a well prepared dinner meal, that she declines after making a snide remark about having a partially lacerated liver. As Ben begins to leave the room, Cass quickly asks if her parents' bodies were already sent back to Amarillo for burial and how the accident was listed on the official police report. Ben responds with an awkward, "I'm not really sure." Cass tries to imply that it was her father's tendencies to drive while intoxicated and speeding that caused the accident.

The next night we find Cass abruptly awakened from a brief flashback of something she appears to be hiding. Ben is seated at the foot of her bed looking concerned and says, "you were screaming." Cass takes a sip of water and only replies that it's late and he should get back to sleep. A few hours later Cass is seated in Ben's room staring blankly at him sleeping. As he awakes to the dawn of morning and notices her, he quietly yells, "Jesus!" She goes on to ask him if he likes her or just feels sorry for her situation. Ben agrees that he likes her. Cass begins to explain why there is little reason to remain there and encourages him to run away with her and live with her "hip" aunt (Heather Graham) and uncle (Dylan McDermott), who live in Baltimore.

Making their way down the road, Cass explains the importance of having a plan and not just some "pipe dream." After Cassie's highly intellectual explanation of what a pipe dream is, he asks, "What part of your brain works so hard at and makes you think and talk like that?" Cass informs him that her father was a professor with a very wide vocabulary and many unique ideas; that when he wasn't teaching college he "taught her" and her mother "never did anything". [about it] Their first stop is at a pig farm run by an also maritally distraught Henderson (Val Kilmer), who approaches them hiding in his hog house. Henderson explains that his wife saw them come in from across the road and tosses Cass and Ben some sandwiches his wife made for them. Henderson welcomes them to stay and responds to Cassie's question of how much is room, board, and water with, "I imagine falling to sleep to the smell of pig shit outta do it." Ben later explains that his plan for life is to become a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. The two appear to stick around for at least a few days. We don't find out Cassie's full plan but one night, as they hear Henderson and his wife arguing, she tells Ben that them getting married is "a major part of the plan." That same night Cass has another nightmarish flashback involving the car accident that gives us a little more depth to her secret. The next day, Henderson performs what imitates a wedding ceremony for the two.

They both get back on the road, but when they stop for a break, a police car pulls up. The officers (Stephen Root and Toby Huss) question the two for being alone but Cass quickly creates a story. "We're in that green station wagon next to the pissers." Cass goes on to reiterate that their father had a recent bladder transplant and it's been "more like a medical convention than a vacation." As Sheriff Brock (Root) is skeptical but nearly convinced, the station wagon pulls out of the parking lot. It seems that Ben and Cass would spend the night in jail when Cass fakes a seizure in her cell. Deputy Raymond Ward (Huss), designated to guard the two, believes it and unwittingly lets Ben out of his cell to assist her. As he prepares to help Ward prevent Cass from choking on her tongue, Ben pushes Ward over giving them enough time to escape and lock the jail cell door behind them.

As they take their next break, Ben makes a short argument and questions Cass about her brash attitude. A bus full of hippies pulls up and a man walks up asking for directions to Memphis. Ben and Cass are promised a lift in exchange for Cassie's navigation abilities. However, they're only taken as far as Kentucky because Ben becomes jealous with this guy who gets very social-able with Cass and "just lives his life and everything seems to work out." After being dropped off at a farm, Cassie becomes somewhat hostile and begins nagging Ben about how it "would be way too comfortable for me and my banged up body to be in a nice warm bus headed exactly where we want to be goin'." Ben's defense is, "we're married you know. That's suppose to count for something."

In Virginia, Cassie's arm begins to swell. After looking at it, Ben realizes it seems serious and calls a doctor. Seeing as they are two lone children coming to him for medical assistance during the night, they are questioned about where they're from and who their parents are. Cass, once again, attempts to create an elaborate story involving their father being laid off at a local mill and money being tight. Just as before, Cassie's story unfortunately fails. Before they contact the local sheriff, Ben quickly makes up another story about their mother being arrested for armed robbery in Arizona. Cassie is treated and both are back on their way.

The next hitchhike engages them with a very kind and talkative African-American couple. The story Ben and Cass provide this time is he is front runner for both "Mr. Teen Maryland" and "Mr. Teen America." He tells his own tale, where Ripley's Believe It or Not is coming to interview his cousin (Cass) for attempting to walk across Kentucky on her hands but being trampled by cattle before nearly making it. Ben tells the couple, that's how she got hurt.

They successfully make it to Baltimore, where Cassie's aunt and uncle welcome the two into their home. While initially over-enjoyed by finally reaching their destination, Cass becomes more distant and irritable with everyone. More and more actions begin to trigger these terrible feelings and memories to resurface with more frequent nightmares. Cass than has another horrific flashback that provides another portion of her dark repressed memory.

We see Ben getting along with Cassie's aunt and uncle while Cass sits in the corner, alone, and with a look of hollowness and distance. In a later scene, Cassie's uncle decides to try and finally get her involved with the activities. Cass begins dancing with her uncle when he, as a dance move, lifts her up for a moment and he is shocked when Cassie crashes to the floor after struggling from his arms while screaming. She curls up, hides her face, and begins to cry. Her uncle, aunt, and Ben all gather around Cass with looks of fear and confusion.

Cassie's recent emotional resurfacing strengthens the belief of psychological trauma. After eventually falling asleep and being taken to bed, Ben awakes to find Cass is missing. He begins to cautiously search the home and finds her staring at him, with a now completely blank look, as she stands with the wind blowing lightly through her hair and gown while standing on the balcony. She is taken to the Mercy Psychiatric Ward in Virginia. There are no words spoken between them as Cass gives Ben a very emotional good-bye hug and is then taken to her room. Ben is sent to a military academy in North Carolina. After hoping Cass will get better, he is informed that she will be sentenced to a high risk observation ward for no less than 18 months.

Ben decides to run away from the academy and ultimately go save Cass before its too late. He ends up finding a ride with a businessman (Ethan Phillips), all the way back to Virginia. They talk briefly about families. Ben openly mentions his plan to break his wife out of a psychiatric ward, which has the businessman question if maybe Ben was the one staying at the hospital. Ben produces a plan to sneak into the hospital after hours by quietly catching the door before it closes after an employee leaves for the evening. Ben makes his way to Cassie's room, only to find her eerily calm and quiet. He walks up and sits softly next to her. He tells Cass that he's come to get her out. She seems reluctant and responds, "what if I'm really, really tired?" Cass then leans over, kisses him lightly on the cheek, and lays her head on his shoulder. The next scene is a flashback and full disclosure of Cassie's destructive secret.

It's a stormy night out and the Kennington's are heading hastily down a country road. Cass is seated in the front passenger seat, with her father driving, and her mother sitting in the middle rear seat. Cass is seen placing a pillow to cover up her crossed legs, seemingly to protect herself from her father. Her father then removes the pillow, and begins to rub her leg with his fingers. She soon fights back, screaming, and causes the car to swerve and then crash.

After the flashback, we're brought back to Cass and Ben in the hospital. Ben tells her that she "took it as long as you could. You can't blame yourself for that." He pushes her hair back to try and comfort her, and she replies sorrowfully with, "there are good parts to them to." Ben repeats that its time to leave. Cassie's guilt holds high and she tells him, "I'm sick. When you kill two people, it makes you sick." He tells her again that he is taking her out of there and assures her that they'll worry about everything else later. She agrees and they escape.

Ben narrates that before he and Cass could start their lives together, he must resolve some things for himself first. Ben is seen burning down his mother's only movie theater and crashing his father's boat. It looks like an act of anger only at first. In fact, he has made them free from their own distractions that kept them from the truth. Now when they had lost what they thought was their only meaning of life, they look ruined, but they are free. As Ben's parents grieve for their lost things, Ben and Cass watch from the top of a nearby pickup truck, arms around each other.

The movie then progresses to Ben and Cassie's lives as they get older, with Ben's child voice still narrating. When they are adults, Cass becomes an editor for children books and Ben becomes the youngest pitcher in Major League Baseball to pitch in the World Series. After his arm gives out, he becomes a writer as Cass planned. They eventually have two kids, whose names are unknown. We see, a now elderly, Ben and Cass walking along the beach holding hands. He continues to narrate the lessons he learned in life. "Having the chance to give what you never got." "Most people need a plan. Life is crazy enough without one." Ben is now walking down the beach all alone. Narration continues, "The hardest part of life is losing someone you love. At first, you almost wish you never knew them, so it would stop hurting so much. It feels like it's going to kill you." Now showing earlier scenes when Ben first met Cass and of their journey. "What you end up missing the most is the sweet burden of being needed. It gives your life a purpose. It really does. And it makes you feel great." "That's something else Cassie taught me. It's all part of the plan."

Cast [ edit ]

• AnnaSophia Robb as Cassie Kennington
• Cayden Boyd as Ben Reynolds
• Val Kilmer as Henderson
• Matthew Modine as Ben's Father
• Lara Flynn Boyle as Ben's Mother
• Heather Graham as Cassie's Aunt
• Dylan McDermott as Cassie's Uncle

References [ edit ]

• ↑ Have Dreams, Will Travel (Dream It Out Loud) at Rotten Tomatoes

External links [ edit ]

This article "Have Dreams, Will Travel" is from Wikipedia . The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Have Dreams, Will Travel . Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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A Gen Xer who got $250,000 in student loans forgiven said he can now finally start saving for retirement — and consider his dream of studying in India

• Joel Lambdin, 49, received $250,000 in student-loan forgiveness in January.
• It's a result of the Education Department's one-time account adjustments.
• Lambdin said the relief would allow him to save for retirement and consider long-term dreams.

Joel Lambdin finished graduate school in 1998 — but as a professional musician, he was hardly making enough money to pay off his student loans and other bills.

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That account adjustment led to a letter Lambdin received on January 31, reviewed by BI, from his student-loan servicer Aidvantage. It said: "Congratulations! The Biden-Harris Administration has forgiven your federal student loan(s) listed below with Aidvantage in full."

For Lambdin, that letter meant his $249,255 outstanding student-loan balance was effectively wiped out.

"It had started to feel like my fate was being decided for me by the cold hand of finance," Lambdin said, "and that was a weight that I didn't realize was there until it wasn't there."

He added: "The feeling was much more like putting down a backpack that was really full of books that you got used to. And then you put it down, and you're like, 'Oh, man, that feels so much better.' It's more like that, rather than sort of a jump-for-joy kind of situation."

While Lambdin is still working to determine what exactly the relief will mean for him and his wife, he said, discussing retirement is "a much more present conversation now" because contributing to savings is viable after the relief. He can also begin to look into buying a home.

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The Education Department continues to cancel student debt through its one-time account adjustments, a process it plans to complete this summer. Most recently, the department wiped out $7.4 billion in student debt for 277,000 borrowers , some of whom benefited from the adjustments.

Beyond financial goals, Lambdin said the relief was also allowing him the freedom to pursue some of his long-term dreams, including taking a sabbatical to study with his meditation teacher in India.

"It's something that I wouldn't have been able to even consider doing if we had to pay off student loans, but without them, it's something that I can really seriously consider doing," he said. "And so those are the kinds of things that I think get really lost in the monetary side of the conversation about debt relief."

'I've been really lucky'

While Lambdin said he felt as though he earned the relief given his decades of payments, he recognized that it's not that easy for many other borrowers.

For example, as BI has previously reported , some borrowers who might qualify for relief through different repayment programs may not have gotten it yet because of paperwork backlogs and administrative errors. On top of that, funding for federal student-loan servicers is strained — meaning many borrowers face hourslong hold times and cannot get clear answers from customer service regarding their payment progress.

"There are some real horror stories out there, and I've been really lucky in that I haven't experienced the kinds of shenanigans that other people have experienced," Lambdin said. "So I actually feel very lucky that things have transpired the way they have."

Some of those horror stories include inaccurate payment projections and delayed billing statements . When it comes to student-loan forgiveness, some borrowers told BI that their servicer made a mistake with the forgiveness , reinstating their payments months later.

The Education Department has said it's aware of the challenges borrowers face and has established an accountability framework to punish servicers when they fail to fulfill their contractual obligations.

The department is also in the process of crafting its new plan for student-loan forgiveness — it recently released the draft text of the rules , which included relief for borrowers with unpaid interest and those who have been in repayment for at least 20 years.

As for Lambdin, he's still figuring out how to approach life without student debt hanging over his head. But now he can consider various options, and he can thank the loan forgiveness for that freedom.

"There's a certain amount of waiting for the other shoe to drop because it's not that I don't trust that it's happening but just that the debt has been with me for so long, and then it's not there," Lambdin said. "And it's something that I think really takes some getting used to."

Watch: Biden announces who can have $10,000 erased in student loans

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Toronto will soon have a new direct flight to an ancient European city

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If you're in the middle of planning your dream European summer, you'll be pleased to hear that a new nonstop flight service will be launching soon between Toronto and Rome. 

Starting Friday, May 10, Italy's national flag carrier, ITA Airways will be launching direct roundtrip flights from Toronto Pearson International Airport to Rome Fiumicino Airport . 

This marks the airline's first direct entry route into Canada and aligns with its plans for greater expansion throughout North America. Earlier this month, ITA Airways also launched a direct flight service from Chicago to Rome. 

Throughout May, the airline will be offering six flights weekly from Toronto to Rome, and will ramp up its service to daily flights from June to September to keep up with the busy summer travel period.

Throughout October, the national flag carrier will continue to offer five flights weekly from Toronto to Rome. 

The beautiful city of Rome is home to endless historic sites, attractions, and ancient architecture, including the Colosseum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, and Galleria Borghese. 

Both one-way and roundtrip tickets on the new routes are available for booking now. 

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New DreamWorks Land is just the beginning. Universal Orlando shares big summer plans.

Dreamworks land at universal orlando to open june 2024. when does epic universe, the brand new theme park, open sometime in 2025..

Ever wanted to train alongside Po, perform with Poppy or even swim in the swamp with Shrek? You'll soon get your wish (except that last one).

Universal Orlando Resort revealed its new DreamWorks Land will officially debut on June 14, along with several other new experiences for guests to enjoy this summer.

“We are thrilled to debut an array of never-before-seen experiences for the entire family to enjoy from day to night,” Karen Irwin, President & COO of Universal Orlando Resort, said in a press release. “These new experiences – coupled with the amazing attractions currently in our theme parks – will allow our guests to create lasting memories that will make this summer truly unforgettable.”

Where is DreamWorks Land?

The new themed environment inspired by DreamWorks Animation films and characters will be located where  Woody Woodpecker's KidZone used to be, near E.T. Adventure.

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Starting June 14, guests can explore the vivid worlds of some of DreamWorks Animation’s most beloved characters from "Shrek," "Trolls" and "Kung Fu Panda."

"The expansive new area will feature interactive play areas, character meet-and-greets, an all-new indoor live show experience, unique treats and photo-worthy moments that are fun for the whole family," Universal Orlando shared. "Guests will be able to explore Shrek’s Swamp, enjoy the Trollercoaster, interact with Po in the Panda Village, encounter characters like Gabby from 'Gabby’s Dollhouse' and so much more."

Several popular characters will also be featured in a new multisensory live show called DreamWorks Imagination Celebration.

New fountain and drone show coming to Universal Studios Florida

Universal Studios Florida lagoon will come to life with an all-new nighttime show, CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular.

Universal shared the new show will include iconic scores and scenes from films that have inspired Universal Orlando’s past, present and future attractions – including Warner Bros. Pictures' "Harry Potter" and "Fantastic Beasts" films, "Jurassic World," "Jaws," "Shrek," "Ghostbusters," "Trolls," "Back to the Future," Universal monsters, "Transformers," "How to Train Your Dragon," "E.T.," "Fast and Furious," "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," "Minions," "The Mummy," and "King Kong."

The lagoon show will feature 228 fountains reaching heights of up to 131 feet, 4K projection mapping, an original composition featuring newly arranged scores meticulously crafted for each scene, and more than 600 drones.

Universal and more for under $100 a day: Summer ticket deals at Florida theme parks

Universal Orlando to debut new parade based on beloved films

Universal's new parade is perfect for any parkgoers who love films. Beginning Wednesday, July 3, Universal Studios Florida will debut its Universal Mega Movie Parade – a spectacular celebration of iconic movies.  

"Universal Mega Movie Parade will be Universal Orlando’s biggest daytime parade to date and combine 13 brand new floats, nearly 100 performers – including dancers, skaters, stilt walkers, poi performers and more – and special effects to create a jaw-dropping experience where guests can relive classic film moments in a whole new way," Universal shared in its press release.

New themed merchandise heading to parks

Guests visiting the parks can already start gearing up for the new entertainment coming this summer with specialty merchandise celebrating the new experiences, including clothing, drinkware, headbands themed to beloved DreamWorks characters, and more.

In the coming months, Universal Orlando’s Summer Tribute Store will complement the new parade experience and feature themed rooms, merchandise, and photo ops inspired by some of the films that will be seen in the Universal Mega Movie Parade.

Hogwarts Castle gets a new Harry Potter-inspired projection show

Universal officials conjured up some magic for its final announcement.

On select nights, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade at Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure will delight guests with a new nighttime projection show, Hogwarts Always. The show seeks to take guests on a journey through iconic moments of a school year at Hogwarts, all set against the majestic backdrop of Hogwarts Castle.

The show will also feature four different endings that celebrate each Hogwarts house and will culminate with a colorful pyrotechnic display. Fans should also listen for dialogue from beloved characters like Professor Dumbledore, Hagrid, the Sorting Hat and more throughout the show.

What month will Epic Universe open?

In addition to DreamWorks Land and all the other new experiences, Universal Orlando will see some other exciting additions to its resort soon — a brand  new theme park . Just not this year.

Universal hasn’t yet announced an opening date for Epic Universe, only that it will open in 2025.

Epic Universe will feature five lands guests can explore. Altogether, it will have “more than 50 awe-inspiring attractions, entertainment, dining and shopping experiences,” according to a press release from the resort.

• Celestial Park   – The first-world guests enter the park will feature relaxing gardens, a “wet play area,” a grand carousel, and Starfall Racers, a dual-launch racing roller coaster with 5,000 feet of track and speeds up to 62 miles per hour. Celestial Park will also serve as the gateway to Epic Universe’s four other worlds, which will be accessed by themed portals.
• How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk  will give fans of the “ How to Train Your Dragon ” franchise a chance to finally soar like Hiccup, Astrid and their fellow Dragon Riders do on screen.
• Dark Universe  - Guests can expect to “encounter everything from the experiments of Dr. Victoria Frankenstein to the shadowy landscape where monsters roam in a world of myth and mystery.”
• Super Nintendo World  will bring guests into the fan-favorite video game franchise for adventures with Mario, Princess Peach and more, like at  Universal Studios Hollywood .
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Ministry of Magic  will blend "1920s wizarding Paris from Warner Bros. Pictures’ ‘Fantastic Beasts’ films with the iconic British Ministry of Magic from the Harry Potter series,” according to Universal Orlando, which is already home to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley.

Contributing: Eve Chen, USA TODAY

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In Ukraine, New American Technology Won the Day. Until It Was Overwhelmed.

Project Maven was meant to revolutionize modern warfare. But the conflict in Ukraine has underscored how difficult it is to get 21st-century data into 19th-century trenches.

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By David E. Sanger

David E. Sanger is a White House and national security reporter. He is the author, with Mary K. Brooks, of “New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion and America’s Struggle to Save the West,” from which this article is adapted.

The idea triggered a full-scale revolt on the Google campus.

Six years ago, the Silicon Valley giant signed a small, $9 million contract to put the skills of a few of its most innovative developers to the task of building an artificial intelligence tool that would help the military detect potential targets on the battlefield using drone footage.

Listen to this article with reporter commentary

Engineers and other Google employees argued that the company should have nothing to do with Project Maven, even if it was designed to help the military discern between civilians and militants.

The uproar forced the company to back out, but Project Maven didn’t die — it just moved to other contractors. Now, it has grown into an ambitious experiment being tested on the front lines in Ukraine, forming a key component of the U.S. military’s effort to funnel timely information to the soldiers fighting Russian invaders.

So far the results are mixed: Generals and commanders have a new way to put a full picture of Russia’s movements and communications into one big, user-friendly picture, employing algorithms to predict where troops are moving and where attacks might happen.

But the American experience in Ukraine has underscored how difficult it is to get 21st-century data into 19th-century trenches. Even with Congress on the brink of providing tens of billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv, mostly in the form of ammunition and long-range artillery, the question remains whether the new technology will be enough to help turn the tide of the war at a moment when the Russians appear to have regained momentum.

‘This Became Our Laboratory’

The war in Ukraine has, in the minds of many American officials, been a bonanza for the U.S. military, a testing ground for Project Maven and other rapidly evolving technologies. The American-made drones that were shipped into Ukraine last year were blown out of the sky with ease. And Pentagon officials now understand, in a way they never did before, that America’s system of military satellites has to be built and set up entirely differently, with configurations that look more like Elon Musk’s Starlink constellations of small satellites.

Meanwhile, American, British and Ukrainian officers, along with some of Silicon Valley’s top military contractors, are exploring new ways of finding and exploiting Russian vulnerabilities, even while U.S. officials try to navigate legal restraints about how deeply they can become involved in targeting and killing Russian troops.

“At the end of the day this became our laboratory,” said Lt. Gen. Christopher T. Donahue, commander of the 18th Airborne Division, who is known as “the last man in Afghanistan” because he ran the evacuation of the airport in Kabul in August 2021, before resuming his work infusing the military with new technology.

And despite the early concerns at Google over participation in Project Maven, some of the industry’s most prominent figures are at work on national security issues, underscoring how the United States is harnessing its competitive advantage in technology to maintain superiority over Russia and China in an era of renewed superpower rivalries.

Tellingly, those figures now include Eric Schmidt, who spent 16 years as Google’s chief executive and is now drawing on lessons from Ukraine to develop a new generation of autonomous drones that could revolutionize warfare.

But if Russia’s brutal assault on Ukraine has been a testing ground for the Pentagon’s drive to embrace advanced technology, it has also been a bracing reminder of the limits of technology to turn the war.

Ukraine’s ability to repel the invasion arguably hinges more on renewed deliveries of basic weapons and ammunition, especially artillery shells.

The first two years of the conflict have also shown that Russia is adapting, much more quickly than anticipated, to the technology that gave Ukraine an initial edge.

In the first year of the war, Russia barely used its electronic warfare capabilities. Today it has made full use of them, confusing the waves of drones the United States has helped provide. Even the fearsome HIMARS missiles that President Biden agonized over giving to Kyiv, which were supposed to make a huge difference on the battlefield, have been misdirected at times as the Russians learned how to interfere with guidance systems.

Not surprisingly, all these discoveries are pouring into a series of “lessons learned” studies, conducted at the Pentagon and NATO headquarters in Brussels, in case NATO troops ever find themselves in direct combat with President Vladimir V. Putin’s forces. Among them is the discovery that when new technology meets the brutality of old-fashioned trench warfare, the results are rarely what Pentagon planners expected.

“For a while we thought this would be a cyberwar,’’ Gen. Mark A. Milley, who retired last year as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last summer. “Then we thought it was looking like an old-fashioned World War II tank war.”

Then, he said, there were days when it seemed as though they were fighting World War I.

More than a thousand miles west of Ukraine, deep inside an American base in the heart of Europe, is the intelligence-gathering center that has become the focal point of the effort to bring the allies and the new technology together to target Russian forces.

Visitors are discouraged in “the Pit,” as the center is known. American officials rarely discuss its existence, in part because of security concerns, but mostly because the operation raises questions about how deeply involved the United States is in the day-to-day business of finding and killing Russian troops.

The technology in use there evolved from Project Maven. But a version provided to Ukraine was designed in a way that does not rely on the input of the most sensitive American intelligence or advanced systems.

The goals have come a long way since the outcry at Google six years ago.

“In those early days, it was pretty simple,” said Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan, who was the first director of the Pentagon’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center. “It was as basic as you could get. Identifying vehicles, people, buildings, and then trying to work our way to something more sophisticated.”

Google’s exit, he said, may have slowed progress toward what the Pentagon now called “algorithmic warfare.” But “we just kept going.”

By the time the Ukraine war was brewing, Project Maven’s elements were being designed and built by nearly five dozen firms, from Virginia to California.

Yet there was one commercial company that proved most successful in putting it all together on what the Pentagon calls a “single pane of glass”: Palantir, a company co-founded in 2003 by Peter Thiel, the billionaire conservative-libertarian, and Alex Karp, its chief executive.

Palantir focuses on organizing, and visualizing, masses of data. But it has often found itself at the center of a swirling debate about when building a picture of the battlefield could contribute to overly automated decisions to kill.

Early versions of Project Maven, relying on Palantir’s technology, had been deployed by the U.S. government during the COVID-19 pandemic and the Kabul evacuation operation, to coordinate resources and track readiness. “We had this torrent of data but humans couldn’t process it all,” General Shanahan said.

Project Maven quickly became the standout success among the Pentagon’s many efforts to tiptoe into algorithmic warfare, and soon incorporated feeds from nearly two dozen other Defense Department programs and commercial sources into an unprecedented common operating picture for the U.S. military.

But it had never been to war.

A Meeting on the Polish Border

Early one morning after the Russian invasion, a top American military official and one of Ukraine’s most senior generals met on the Polish border to talk about a new technology that might help the Ukrainians repel the Russians.

The American had a computer tablet in his car, operating Project Maven through Palantir’s software and connected to a Starlink terminal.

His tablet’s display showed many of the same intelligence feeds that the operators in the Pit were seeing, including the movement of Russian armored units and the chatter among the Russian forces as they fumbled their way to Kyiv.

As the two men talked, it became evident that the Americans knew more about where Ukraine’s own troops were than the Ukrainian general did. The Ukrainian was quite certain his forces had taken a city back from the Russians; the American intelligence suggested otherwise. When the American official suggested he call one of his field commanders, the Ukrainian general discovered that the American was right.

The Ukrainian was impressed — and angry. American forces should be fighting alongside the Ukrainians, he said.

“We can’t do that,” the American responded, explaining that Mr. Biden forbade it. What the United States can provide, he said, is an evolving picture of the battlefield.

Today a similar tension continues to play out inside the Pit, where each day a careful dance is underway. The military has taken seriously Mr. Biden’s mandate that the United States should not directly target Russians. The president has said that Russia must not be allowed to win, but that the United States must also “avoid World War III.”

So, the Americans point the Ukrainians in the right direction but stop short of giving them precise targeting data.

The Ukrainians quickly improved, and they built a sort of shadow Project Maven, using commercial satellite firms like Maxar and Planet Labs and data scraped from Twitter and Telegram channels.

Instagram shots, taken by Russians or nearby Ukrainians, often showed dug-in positions or camouflaged rocket launchers. Drone imagery soon became a crucial source of precise targeting data, as did geolocation data from Russian soldiers who did not have the discipline to turn off their cellphones.

This flow of information helped Ukraine target Russia’s artillery. But the initial hope that the picture of the battlefield would flow to soldiers in the trenches, connected to phones or tablets, has never been realized, field commanders say.

One key to the system was Starlink, the Elon Musk-provided mesh of satellites, which was often the only thing connecting soldiers to headquarters, or to one another. That reinforced what was already becoming blindingly obvious: Starlink’s network of 4,700 satellites proved nearly as good as — and sometimes better than — the United States’ billion-dollar systems, one White House official said.

Dreams of Drone Fleets

For a while, it seemed as if this technological edge might allow Ukraine to push the Russians out of the country entirely.

In a suburb of Kyiv, Ukrainian high school students spent the summer of 2023 working in a long-neglected factory, soldering together Chinese-supplied components for small drones, which were then mounted onto carbon-fiber frames. The contraptions were light and cheap, costing about $350 each.

Soldiers on the front lines would then strap each one to a two-or-three pound explosive charge designed to immobilize an armored vehicle or kill the operators of a Russian artillery brigade. The drones were designed for what amounted to crewless kamikaze missions, intended for one-time use, like disposable razors.

The broken-down factory near Kyiv encapsulated all the complications and contradictions of the Ukraine war. From the start, the Ukrainians understood that to win, or even to stay in the game, they had to reinvent drone warfare. But they could barely keep enough parts coming in to sustain the effort.

The mission of remaking Ukraine’s drone fleet has captivated Mr. Schmidt, the former chief executive of Google.

“Ukraine,” he said in October, between trips to the country, “has become the laboratory in the world on drones.” He described the sudden appearance of several hundred drone start-ups in Ukraine of “every conceivable kind.”

But by the fall of 2023 he began to worry that Ukraine’s innovative edge alone would not be enough. Russia’s population was too big and too willing to sacrifice, oil prices remained high, China was still supplying the Russians with key technologies and parts — while they also sold to the Ukrainians.

And while Ukrainian pop-up factories churned out increasingly cheap drones, he feared they would quickly be outmatched.

So Mr. Schmidt began funding a different vision, one that is now, after the Ukraine experience, gaining adherents in the Pentagon: far more inexpensive, autonomous drones, which would launch in swarms and talk to each other even if they lost their connection to human operators on the ground. The idea is a generation of new weapons that would learn to evade Russian air defenses and reconfigure themselves if some drones in the swarm were shot down.

It is far from clear that the United States, accustomed to building exquisite, $10 million drones, can make the shift to disposable models. Or that it is ready to bring on the targeting questions that come with fleets driven by A.I.

“There’s an awful lot of moral issues here,” Mr. Schmidt acknowledged, noting that these systems would create another round of the long-running debates about targeting based on artificial intelligence, even as the Pentagon insists that it will maintain “appropriate levels of human judgment over the use of force.”

He also came to a harsh conclusion: This new version of warfare would likely be awful.

“Ground troops, with drones circling overhead, know they’re constantly under the watchful eyes of unseen pilots a few kilometers away,” Mr. Schmidt wrote last year. “And those pilots know they are potentially in opposing cross hairs watching back. … This feeling of exposure and lethal voyeurism is everywhere in Ukraine.”

Read by David E. Sanger

Audio produced by Adrienne Hurst .

David E. Sanger covers the Biden administration and national security. He has been a Times journalist for more than four decades and has written several books on challenges to American national security. More about David E. Sanger

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April 23, 2024 - Israel-Hamas war

By Sana Noor Haq, Christian Edwards, Tori B. Powell and Aditi Sangal, CNN

Our live coverage of Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza has moved  here .

US Senate passes $95 billion package that includes aid for Israel and other countries after months of delay

From CNN's Kristin Wilson and Sam Fossum

The US Senate passed, with wide bipartisan support, a $95 billion foreign aid package Tuesday night which includes aid for countries including Israel.

The legislation ties together four bills that the House voted on separately in a rare Saturday session, providing over $26 billion for Israel, nearly $61 billion in aid for Ukraine and more than $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific. 

The final vote was 79-18. Fifteen Republicans voted with three Democrats against the bill, while 48 Democrats and 31 Republicans voted for the bill.

It will now be sent to be signed by President Joe Biden, who applauded the package's passage on Tuesday and said that he will sign the legislation on Wednesday.

“This critical legislation will make our nation and world more secure as we support our friends who are defending themselves against terrorists like Hamas and tyrants like Putin,” Biden said in a written statement.

The death toll in Gaza continues to rise. Here's what you should know

From CNN staff

Israeli military operations in Gaza have killed at least 34,183 people after 200 days of war, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The Government Media Office in Gaza said that, over the past 200 days, 14,778 children  had been killed  – as had 9,752 women. The Media Office also said that 17,000 children in Gaza had lost one or both parents.

Here are other headlines you should know:

• Developments on the ground: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a warning to people in parts of the area of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza to evacuate and relocate to shelters in other parts of the enclave. The Israeli military and journalists in Gaza reported extensive strikes overnight in several parts of the territory. Also, Israeli air strikes demolished the top three floors of the Al-Sahaba building in Gaza City, in the northern part of the enclave, Monday. The IDF also said it had “ successfully intercepted two suspicious aerial targets off the northern coast.” Elsewhere, Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of the Hamas military wing Al Qassam Brigades, urged continued attacks on Israel in his first video message in more than six weeks on Tuesday, marking 200 days of the Israel-Hamas war.
• More bodies found at Khan Younis hospital: Emergency workers on Tuesday recovered at least 35 more bodies from a mass grave within the  Nasser medical complex , in southern Gaza, after Israeli forces withdrew from the neighborhood earlier this month. The total number of bodies found increased to 310, Col. Yamen Abu Suleiman, the director of Civil Defense in Khan Younis, told CNN, adding that operations are ongoing.
• Latest out of Lebanon: The Israeli military says it killed two members of the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah, in southern Lebanon. In the the southern village of Hanine in Lebanon, an Israeli airstrike targeted a house that killed at least two people and injuring six others, according to state-run media NNA.
• Iranian threats: An Israeli attack on Iranian territory would have serious consequences and result in there being "nothing left" of Israel, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi said Tuesday, according to reporting from Iranian state news agency IRNA reported. The warning came after Israel on Friday carried out a military strike inside Iran, a US official told CNN, although Israel has not officially claimed the attack.
• Humanitarian crisis: More than 270,000 tons of solid waste across the entire Gaza Strip remain uncollected, the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said Tuesday, as Israel's military campaign has disrupted essential services in the enclave. The agency also reported that more than 75% of the entire population across Gaza has been displaced as of April 21, that relief operations there have been “severely restricted” by Israeli authorities and that the health system in the enclave has been crushed. 
• Humanitarian aid: Jordan  has conducted an airdrop of humanitarian and relief aid into Gaza on Tuesday, according to Jordanian state news agency Petra. Also, US military vessels are in the Mediterranean region and “standing by” and prepared to begin construction on the temporary pier off the coast of Gaza when given the order to do so, Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Tuesday. 

"200 days of war, it feels like 200 years." Palestinian children mourn lost dreams

From CNN’s Mohammad Al Sawalhi, Abeer Salman and Sana Noor Haq 

Young children wearing sandals pucker their faces under the Gazan sun. Others drift barefoot across the courtyard of a sprawling school in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.

CNN footage shows clothes on washing lines and dusty plastic tents fluttering in the wind. 

“Our lives are full of suffering, no drinking water, no livable place to stay,” says Mohammad Shabat, a displaced Palestinian. “There is no health, no education. How will these children live? How will they study? We had COVID, now we have war. We are mentally exhausted.  “I am 60 years old, I lived through wars before, but we never lived through this oppression.” 

Palestinians described months of forced displacement as they waited anxiously for news from relatives separated across the enclave, with no relief from Israeli strikes. 

Rahaf Shabbat, a young student who was forced to flee from Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, told CNN she was heartbroken when the war disrupted her school year. “Today marks 200 days of war, it feels like 200 years... of fear and horror, rockets, martyrs, and deaths,” she said. 

Another Palestinian child, Rama Shabat, says she has not seen her loved ones for seven months. “We lost our dreams and our childhood. We miss our loved ones in the north,” Rama told CNN, as she broke down into tears.  

Hala Abdan, a lawyer, said her 20-year-old son’s left foot was amputated after he was injured by a drone strike in December. “I struggle to provide him anything, just like all the Palestinian people,” she said. “It has been 200 days full of suffering that one can barely bear... 200 days of catastrophe.” 

2 people killed in Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon, state media says

From CNN’s Ruba Alhenawi

An Israeli airstrike on the southern village of Hanine in Lebanon targeted a house, killing at least two people and injuring six others, according to state-run media NNA.

A woman and her 11-year-old niece were killed and at least six others were wounded ,  NNA reported. 

The incident happened on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. local time when the two-story house of Ahmad Ali Khashakesh in Hanine was struck with two rockets, according to NNA .

CNN reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the incident.  

Earlier Tuesday ,  the IDF announced that fighter jets struck Hezbollah military positions in the area of Markaba in southern Lebanon. Also on Tuesday, the IDF said it had “successfully intercepted two suspicious aerial targets off the northern coast.”

"They erased our memories": Palestinians on 200 days of Israel's war on Hamas

From CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman and Sana Noor Haq 

Nirmine Moussa said her children will never get used to the sound of Israeli strikes raining down on Gaza. The Palestinian mother was left homeless after her house in the north was destroyed in the early days of the war.  

“They erased our memories,” said Moussa, who is displaced in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. “My children are not used to the sound of bombardment every second of the day. They live in a nightmare forever, after the IDF destroyed their dreams and their future, by destroying their schools and killing their friends.” 

After 200 days since Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza, Palestinians who spoke to CNN by phone say they feel exhausted by a war that has wiped out families and turned once-lively neighborhoods into rubble-filled wastelands.  

“Have I even survived without my father, without my house, without everything?” said Maram Faraj, 26, a writer displaced in the coastal town of Al-Mawasi. “Will I be the next genocide victim? If so, will my family be able to identify my body?” 

Raed Redwan, who is in the southern city of Rafah, said he is homeless and afraid. The teacher and academic said he has been living on the streets for more than six months, with no access to electricity or running water.  

“After 200 days of genocide in Gaza, I still ask why this happened? Who is responsible for continuous war in Gaza? Why did they leave us alone in this war?... There is no one able to help me, my baby, or my family,” Redwan said. “l’ve lost everything... But I still hold hope.” 

Construction on temporary pier for Gaza will begin very soon, Pentagon says

From CNN's Haley Britzky

US military vessels are in the Mediterranean region and “standing by” and prepared to begin construction on the temporary pier off the coast of Gaza when given the order to do so, Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Tuesday. 

He also said the United States was “positioned to begin construction very soon, in the near future.”

Currently, officials are working through a checklist of processes and procedures, including security on the ground, coordination with partners supporting this effort and drawing up a timeline for implementation, Ryder said.

Ryder has said the expectation is for the temporary pier to be operational by the end of April or early May, and said Tuesday the military is on track to meet that timeline. 

The World Food Programme (WFP) will support the distribution of aid from the pier following weeks of diplomatic wrangling, the organization said Saturday.

The temporary pier, which will be several miles off the coast of Gaza, will receive both military and civilian vessels, Ryder added. The aid brought by those vessels will then be transported from the pier by US military vessels to the causeway, where non-military trucks — driven by non-profit organization personnel — will take the aid and then distribute it into Gaza.

Hamas military spokesperson urges continued attacks on Israel in first video message in almost 2 months

From CNN's Ruba Alhenawi

Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of Hamas’ military wing Al Qassam Brigades, urged continued attacks on Israel in his first video message in more than six weeks on Tuesday, marking 200 days of the Israel-Hamas war.

"We will keep attacking the enemy with different techniques as long as the aggression continues on our land," Abu Obaida said. Hamas fighters would "keep coming out to fight the enemy," he added.

He also praised Iran's  unprecedented strikes  on Israel earlier this month, saying the attack's "size and nature, established new rules and confused the enemy's calculations." Iran launched a large-scale drone and missile attack at Israel in retaliation for a suspected Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic complex in Syria . The Israeli military said 99% of the more than 300 projectiles fired were intercepted.

Abu Obaida also slammed Israel's role in the hostage release and ceasefire negotiations, saying Israel is "trying to renounce all his promises" and wants to "gain more time." Israel and the US have  blamed Hamas  for holding up negotiations by making unreasonable demands.

Jordan conducts aid airdrop into Gaza

From CNN's Ibrahim Dahman

Jordan has conducted an airdrop of humanitarian and relief aid into Gaza on Tuesday, according to Jordanian state news agency Petra.

The Jordanian Armed Forces conducted seven airdrops to multiple sites in northern Gaza, and said they would continue sending humanitarian and medical aid to Gaza through airdrops, ground convoys and through the Marka airport in Amman to Egypt's Al-Arish International Airport.

Jordan has conducted 87 airdrops into Gaza and took part in 209 international airdrops since October 7, according to Petra.

Petra reported that Tuesday's aid drop was conducted along with the US, Egypt and Germany.

"Focus on Gaza:" As tit-for-tat strikes between Israel and Iran appear to have concluded, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told CNN, "The focus should remain on Gaza," as the strip edges towards famine.

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