this is bbc news. our top stories: 100,000 people flee their homes in northern syria as turkey steps up its assault against the kurds. president erdogan vows to press ahead with the operation. in the us — china trade war, president trump has a substantial deal could be just weeks away. we've had a tremendous, really, negotiation, a very complex negotiation, but something that's going to be great for both countries. the eu agrees to intensify brexit talks with the uk,

but both sides say there is still plenty of work to do. and one man's marathon mission. can this athlete break the two hour barrier in austria? welcome to bbc news. the united nations say around 100,000 people have fled their homes as turkey presses on with its offensive against kurdish forces. there has been heavy fighting in both civilians and dozens of kurdish fighters have lost their lives. turkey wa nts fighters have lost their lives. turkey wants to create a 30 kilometre deep buffer zone running 450 kilometre deep buffer zone running a50 miles, so around 600 kilometres, across the syrian border. turkey's president erdogan vowed to press on with the assault to defeat kurdish fighters who he regards as terrorists and to settle millions of refugees there. three people who we re refugees there. three people who were killed on thursday in a turkish

town have been buried. our international correspondent is there and has been watching the military activity. well, through much of the day, we've been hearing heavy outgoing artillery and mortar fire. now, the turkish authorities say they have advanced into northern syria up to about five miles. president erdogan says he is unconcerned about the international condemnation, but it is growing. turkey is already accused of killing innocent civilians, damaging civilian infrastructure, and causing huge numbers to flee, and all of this while it is supposed to be creating a safe zone for more than a million syrians to go home to. here is turkey's response to international calls for an end to its offensive. its forces continuing to pound north—eastern syria, creating a new landscape of the displaced —

100,000 people and counting, in just three days. but turkey is paying a price. full state honours today for two civilians killed next to the border, seen here as martyrs in operation peace spring. one coffin is child—size, for a baby boy called mohammed, just nine months old. a victim of rocket fire by syrian kurdish forces, their first retaliation for turkey's massive assault on them. and here, mohammed's family, joined together in boundless grief. in the cruelest of ironies, they are syrian refugees themselves. this girl can't hold back her tears.

the mufti called on god to give strength to turkey's soldiers and bring a quick victory, with few casualties. then, a finaljourney to the border town. at the local mosque, friday prayers became a time of mourning for mohammed, whose family fled syria six years ago. his mother, fatima, gave birth to six girls before having a boy. she said she waited 17 years for her only son. now he is gone, and two of her daughters are in intensive care. her husband, hani, battling his

grief, his anger directed at banned kurdish separatists in turkey and kurdish militia in syria. translation: i call on god to bring them failure, to block their path, and not to forgive them. well, prayers are being said here now for baby mohammed. when his family came to turkey, they were hoping against hope to find safety. instead, they were caught up in another round of warfare, and mohammed was killed inside his own home. as he was mourned here, other children were being mourned in syria, including a 12—year—old boy killed by a turkish rocket attack yesterday. mohammed was taken away for burial, a life cut short that leaves a broken family.

back across the border, in syria, a car bomb in the city of qamishli. islamic state said it carried out the attack, which killed at least three civilians. this is just what many have feared and the kurds have predicted — is taking advantage of the chaos caused by turkey's invasion. and tonight, we found more convoys heading for the border, for an operation that has been widely condemned abroad, but is strongly supported at home. the us treasury secretary has spoken of drafting powerful new sanctions against turkey. let's hear more from oui’ against turkey. let's hear more from our north america editor, who explains what could be behind the

conflicting messages coming from the white house. it's undoubtedly clear that donald trump's phone call with president erdogan last weekend paved the way with the invasion for the removal of american troops. since then, donald trump has been saying it is time to get american troops out of the middle east, out of these endless wars costing trillions of dollars. what happens today? an announcement that an extra 1,800 us servicemen are being sent to saudi arabia. we've had president trump saying that he would like to broker some kind of deal between the kurds and the turks, turkish sources in washington saying that's not going to happen. and, as you say, we've had the threat of sanctions from the treasury secretary that steve mnuchin says will shut down the turkish economy. but what will trigger them, we don't know. you get the slight impression that the white house are calling in the locksmiths to put on a couple of extra bolts on the stable door, even though the horse has long since disappeared from view.

let's stay with the stories coming from the us. the former us ambassador to ukraine has testified she was removed from her position on the orders of president trump. she was speaking behind closed doors to congress and said there has been a concerted campaign against her which was based on what she called unfounded and false claims by people with clearly questionable motives. her testimony comes as democrats in congress continue their efforts to learn more about the trump administration's ties to ukraine. the bbc‘s respondent gave us this analysis. you had reports of what her opening statement in front of this closed congressional investigation committee contains, and it was pretty damning for the administration. she said that in this administration, private influence and personal gain were trumping diplomatic judgement. as you mentioned, she was ousted at the same time that rudy giuliani was investigating joe biden and his son's ties to ukraine, outside of

the normal governmental processes. and she says that she was ousted by unfounded and false claims by people with clearly questionable motives. not referring to rudy giuliani directly, but clearly implying that. and you will also remember that during the phone call where donald trump spoke to the ukrainian president, donald trump described her, who had since been fired or withdrawn, as bad news. and so she ties ina withdrawn, as bad news. and so she ties in a bunch of different threads in this investigation into the ukrainian material by giuliani, ukrainian material by giuliani, ukrainian investigations by giuliani. i think it is interesting to see exactly what the democrats are going to be asking her about, and what sort of way she answers these questions. while the impeachment enquiry was going on, president trump was hosting a delegation from china and after they broke up he announced the

first stage of a trade agreement. in his words, it is phase one of a broader agreement and it means increases in tariffs which the us was going to impose on some chinese goods later this month have been suspended while these talks continue. we come to a deal on intellectual property, financial services, a tremendous dealfor the property, financial services, a tremendous deal for the farmers, a purchase of from a0 billion worth of agricultural products. let's get more on this. our correspondent chris buckler is in washington, dc. the argument that has come from president trump is that this is a trade fight that has become a love fest with china. i would perhaps dampen that slightly, because the truth is i kind of feel like we have been here before. there have been points in these long, long negotiations, that have been going on for more months than i care to remember, there have been points when the americans thought they had breakthroughs, on some of these key issues like intellectual property, stopping any theft, to try and

ensure that there is a fairway of american companies operating in china, for example, and also trying to put forward an enforcement mechanism to try and ensure that deal terms are actually enforced properly. and in reality, although president trump is saying they have the first stage of a deal, it seems all of the paperwork has to be drawn up all of the paperwork has to be drawn up as yet. that's going to take a number of weeks, and it won't be signed until sometime in november. now, there is plenty that could go wrong in the meantime. but there are positives for business in the middle of all this, because the reality of achieving some kind of a deal at this stage means that tariffs are not going to be put in place on some chinese product that was intended by the americans in the coming days, and some others in the coming months. now, the fact that those ta riffs months. now, the fact that those tariffs are not going to go in place is potentially good news for chinese businesses, and some would argue, as well, for the american consumer and american businesses as well, because in reality they pay some of those tariffs. and do you think that president trump was under pressure

to try and find a deal? because american farmers, they were being hit. when we talk about soybean crops, at times, give us a sense of the picture of exactly how this was affecting the american voter, for example. i do not think that there is any doubt whatsoever that both sides actually are under pressure to get a deal. but in terms of the us, yes. president trump has in the past said that china is going to buy all sorts of goods, and that hasn't come to recognition, it hasn't actually happened. and american farmers have been frustrated by that. now, if you ta ke been frustrated by that. now, if you take a look at what president trump said today, he was talking about the likes of $a0 billion of american foreign products being built by china. now, if that comes to fruition, that is a really big deal, and could help him, really, with a key constituency as he tries to make his way to that election in 2020. although, again, there will be some people cynical, and his claim that farmers should go out immediately and buy more land then get

contractors, there will be some that will be waiting to say let's see the terms of this deal when it eventually comes. let's get some of the day's other news now. united states has said it is sending 3000 more military personnel to support saudi arabia in response to last month's attack on the country's oil industry. the pentagon said two squadrons of fighter aircraft as well as their air defence systems were being deployed to the country. five people have been injured after a knife attack at a shopping centre in manchester. aao —year—old man was arrested initially on terrorism offences and has now been detained under the mental health act. he was seen chasing offices before he was detained. investigations into the motives behind the attack are now continuing. a murder suspect who has been on the run in france for eight years has 110w run in france for eight years has now been arrested in glasgow. he is accused of having shot dead his wife and four children at their home in

2011. their bodies were found buried in concrete under the garden. prosecutors said the killings were methodical. some bad news for facebook, with a string of international financial companies pulling out of its plans to launch a digital currency. that project was known as libra. it was due for launch next year but in the last few hours the credit giants mastercard and visa have confirmed they no longer support it. it comes after internet giants paypal, ebay and striped also pulled out. david lee explains why these companies are leaving. facebook has had an ambition to launch this currency, libra, and their goal was to gather a huge group of companies to back that effort, and put in some money to make it happen, and also support it through the various processes it needed to go through, whether it comes to regulators and just getting the project off the ground. now, initially they said they had 28

members ready to get started on this, and they were due to meet for the first time this coming monday in geneva, which is where the libra association, this group, is going to be based. but we have been hearing for some time that some of those members were getting a little bit concerned. and the reason why was many politicians and regulators, particularly in the us, were putting this idea under an awful lot of scrutiny. they were saying what is facebook doing to make sure this is going to be secure? what is the company doing to make sure it is not useful things like money laundering? so now, as you are just saying, several of those companies have pulled out. i think the important thing to realise about the companies that have pulled out, visa, mastercard, stripe, a spanish payments provider as well as paypal, they are all big players in the payment space, companies that know how to do global payments across the internet. so that is a pretty big

blow to facebook‘s ambition to get this launched as soon as next year. towards the west and south there is further rain on the way. stay with us, still to come: clashes between police and protesters in ecuador on the 10th day of anti— austerity measures. parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life, but in the marina area where most of the damage was done, they are more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. for19 ever of how much has been destroyed. for 19 years since he was last here, he has gone from a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful dramatic operator.m revolutionary to an experienced and successful dramatic operator. it was a £20 bomb which exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken, mike willesee will prevail. it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this

foremost chosen as the recipient of this fore m ost of chosen as the recipient of this foremost of earthly honours. this catholic nation held its breath for the man they called the 33. and then, bell told nationwide to announce the first rescue and chilli let out an almighty rohrer. —— chile. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: the u.n.'s as 100,000 people have been driven from their homes in syria as turkey continued its assault against the kurds. signs ofa its assault against the kurds. signs of a possible truce in the us— china trade war as president trump says talks have been making progress. after so much pessimism, it seems hopes may be rising also with westminster and brussels that a brexit deal could possibly be achieved. the eu's chief negotiator will intensify talks over the weekend with his british

counterpart. just a few days ago the eu's view was that written's proposals were not acceptable but it seems there a's meeting between british and irish leaders may have changed that. still a work in progress, but he is trying. and now borisjohnson may, just may, be getting somewhere in sketching out a brexit deal. after his show of optimism, alongside ireland's leader yesterday, today on a school visit, it was time to look on the bright side. both of us can see a pathway to a deal, but that doesn't mean it's a done deal. there's a way to go. it's important now that our negotiators, on both sides, get into proper talks. one—to—one, the two leaders had traded ideas, changed the mood, cleared the way for intensive negotiations on terms to be laid on the table behind closed doors. i think, at this stage, probably the less said the better. focus today very much

switches to brussels, where secretary of state barclay is going to meet with michel barnier, and i'd anticipate that that will lead to some more detailed proposals being laid down. next stop, brussels. brexit secretary stephen barclay met the eu's chief negotiator today. the mood visibly positive, though the path to agreement looks steep. brexit is like climbing a mountain. we need vigilance, determination and patience. are we near the top? but what about the obstacles? he wouldn't say. are you going to negotiate over the weekend? would parties, including boris johnson's dup allies, have a veto over northern ireland's future status? no answers today. northern ireland will be part of future uk trade deals, but the uk might drop plans for customs checks on the island of ireland when there is an eu border there. these are the details that could make or break a deal in tough negotiations, but in cyprus, the eu council president was clear. giving up is not an option.

of course, there's no guarantee of success, and the time is practically up. but even the slightest chance must be used. here at westminster, the diaries and calendars for next week are covered in red ink. there is the big eu leaders' summit, then on saturday, a special session of the house of commons. expect a vote on a deal, if there is one, and a push by mps, who want to see brexit decided by another referendum. meanwhile, if there is no agreement, even if there is a deal, the prime minister may struggle to avoid another brexit extension. the last thing he wants, a delay, he mayjust have to accept. the un has called for an investigation into the deaths of five protesters in ecuador after ten days of consecutive protests against the government. the protest had been

triggered by the scrapping of long—standing fuel subsidies, the movement calling for the president to restore them has attracted many from all over the country including indigenous people. violence in the capital has led to a emergency being declared including the president has fled the city. the president has fled the city. the president said basically he was to negotiate directly with the leaders of the indigenous groups. the only problem in the announcement is that he did not specify where or when, so the offering is incomplete. at the same time, the leaders of the indigenous groups said they would not sit down at the table of negotiations if the president does not guarantee that he will remove all the austerity measures that he announced a week ago. he has said all this week and that he will not

ta ke all this week and that he will not take part —— take back his decision. he is trying to offer a plan b, to compensate especially indigenous groups for the loss they will suffer if the fuel, the price of the fuel rises, and everything increase with it. let's turn to the five—year—old daughter of the british— iranian womanjailed in iran on spying charges. gabriella has returned to the uk, she had been living with iran in iran with her grandparents. her mother, nazanin zaghari ratcliffe has been detained over spying allegations which she denies. she was united with her father after 3.5 years apart on saturday night. athletics now, can you's eliud kipchoge is going to attempt to do what no man has done before and run a marathon under two hours. he is running in

vienna tomorrow after missing out on the record by 26 seconds, and this will not count as a world record due to the assistance he has been receiving, it will break one of the mythical barriers in sport. to see the first human being doing this, it is like the first person to land on the moon. on saturday 12 october, eliud kipchoge will try to do what no man has ever done before, run a marathon on in under two hours. he first tried in 2017 in monza, italy, missing out by less than half a minute. so what is different this time around to allow the canyon such confidence? the course is pretty good, it is a straight of a.a kilometres, it is 9.6 kilometres, very flat. it is also crucially in

his eyes, less humid than monza, allowing eliud kipchoge to better regulate his body temperature. the 2017 challenge was sparsely attended and the desire for large crowds to line the root was high up on eliud kipchoge's wish list. line the root was high up on eliud kipchoge's wish listlj line the root was high up on eliud kipchoge's wish list. i want thousands of spectators, the spectators are pushing me. he has grown much physically fit her, he is right now in the best shape he could ever be. physically and everything. in monza it was like a boxer going on without knowing what has happened in the ring. not knowing if he would

be knocked down or be successful. this time i am going to vienna knowing what i will be doing. hopefully i can run under two hours. the reason is i have tried before two years ago. this really is a first, it is making history and i know i will get lots of people will be watching to see if he doesn't. the of cambridge has been visiting a pub in south —— south london this evening to watch england play the czech republic in the year twenty20 qualifiers. he was also promoting the heads up campaign on mental health. he discussed the issue with several people who have been affected by it, the idea behind the campaign is to get men as co mforta ble the campaign is to get men as comfortable talking about mental health as they are talking about football. u nfortu nately health as they are talking about football. unfortunately prince william was not able to guarantee a win for the england team, i don't know if you saw that they lost against the czech republic to—1. and you can reach me on the rest of the

tea m you can reach me on the rest of the team at twitter if you would like to get in touch. goodbye. hello, overall the weather this weekend is not looking ideal, very changeable, a mixed picture throughout the uk, but there is some sunshine on offer to. we will concentrate on the rainfall first, it could be quite heavy again across southern areas of the uk, already the west country has seen a fair bit of rain in the last 2a hours, they could be some flooding during the next day or so again from this weather that stretches right out from the atlantic across into germany and the baltic as well, it is kind of stuck here, a conveyor belt of cloud and moisture that keeps bringing more and more rain, pushed by quite a powerful jetstrea m, pushed by quite a powerful jetstream, it is stuck in this place whereas to the south of the jetstrea m whereas to the south of the jetstream across a large chunk of

the continent, they are enjoying some fine, warm autumn weather. out here in the uk we have that autumn chill. so for the early hours we have cloud and rain across the south, central parts of the uk, clear spells here, whereas scotland and northern ireland are scattering showers. in the south it is still relatively mild, i suppose you could call it, 12 degrees in london, chile and the north—east of england, only six degrees. let's look at the morning forecast, we have cloud and rain across the south at times, it will be quite heavy, and take a look at the weather across much of wales, the midlands, northern england, much of scotla nd the midlands, northern england, much of scotland and northern ireland, absolutely fine, beautiful weather there was sunshine in belfast, newcastle, edinburgh, i bit of a chill in the air here, temperatures may be around 13 or 1a degrees in the south, very far south, i think tempers will be around 15, 16. the weather front is still with us through saturday night, but saturday night into the early hours of sunday that starts to move a little further

north and not only that, we have the weather front heading our way, north and not only that, we have the weatherfront heading our way, so it isa weatherfront heading our way, so it is a real mishmash of cloud, these areas of rain moving across the uk on sunday, i think most of us will catch some rain on sunday, but with a tendency for the weather to improve somewhat through the day across the south, so it may turn up actually quite bright if not sunny for places like portsmouth, maybe even the south—east as well, while the rain moves a little bit further north. a real next day i think on sunday. on monday, sunday and monday we will start to see more weather front coming off the atlantic so you get the message, it is a whole succession of weather systems that just keep coming our way and there are gaps in between so you can see monday actually, at least for a large chunk of the day, central areas of the uk looking fine but then as this rain moves towards northern ireland and the south once againfine northern ireland and the south once again fine weather in the east on

monday.

this is bbc news. our top stories: 100,000 people flee their homes in northern syria as turkey steps up its assault against the kurds. turkish warplanes have continued to bomb targets inside syria. president erdogan vows to press ahead with the operation. president trump has hailed a partial trade agreement signed with china, which will see the us suspend its next round of tariffs on chinese imports. he says the improvements in intellectual property rules will benefit both countries. the eu agrees to intensify brexit talks with the uk, but both sides say there is still plenty of work to do. the british prime minister says he can see a pathway to a deal but there is still a long way to go. they are the headlines on