Islamic State Ousted From Last Strip Of Turkey-Syria Border

Islamic State jihadists have been expelled from the last strip of territory under the group's control along the Syrian-Turkey border, according to Turkey.

Prime Minister Binali Yildrim said Turkish forces and Syrian rebels had pushed back "terrorist organisations".

In a televised speech from the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, he said: "From Azaz to Jarabulus, our 91km border has been completely secured."

It would be a major setback for IS, which uses the border between the two countries as a key supply line to bring in foreign fighters, weapons and ammunition.

The group still holds territory in Syria and Iraq.

Turkey began an operation inside Syria on 24 August, using tanks and war planes to back opposition fighters with special forces also providing support.

The success is likely to deliver a blow to the Syrian Kurdish YPG, which has been gaining territory in the north of Syria with support from the US-led coalition against the extremist group.

Ankara considers the YPG a "terrorist" group and is concerned its expansion along the border could lead to the creation of a semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

It comes as Syrian government troops renewed the siege of rebel-held parts of Aleppo.

Syrian state media said the army and allied forces had taken control of an area south of the city, severing the sole route left into eastern neighbourhoods help by opposition fighters.

That leaves around 250,000 people still living in rebel-controlled parts of the city cut off again from the outside world.

North Korea 'Fires Three Ballistic Missiles'

North Korea has fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, South Korea has said.

The South claimed the show of force was timed to coincide with the G20 summit in neighbouring China.

Seoul said the missiles were fired into the Sea of Japan from the North's Hwangju county at around 3am (GMT).

"They are speculated to be Rodong missiles with a range of 1,000km (600 miles) and were fired without navigational warning to Japan," said a defence ministry spokesman.

"North Korea's ballistic missile launch is a direct violation of UN Security Council resolutions aimed at showing off its nuclear and missile capabilities during the G20 summit," he added.

Sources at Japan's defence ministry told Reuters the missiles are likely to have landed between 120 and 160 miles west of Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost main island. 

The United States condemned what it described as the "reckless" launches.

It said they were a threat to civil aviation and maritime commerce, adding that it planned to raise concerns about North Korea's nuclear programme at the G20 summit.

China's Foreign Ministry said it hoped the parties involved would avoid any actions that could increase tensions.      

The North regularly engages in missile and rocket tests, especially when the world's eyes are turned to northeast Asia.

:: Obama Warns Of No Special Favours For The UK Over Trade

World leaders have gathered for the G20 in the city of Hangzhou in eastern China, which is the North's only major ally.

The launch of the missiles came hours after the leaders of South Korea and China met on the sidelines of the summit.

During the meeting South Korean President Park Geun-hye criticised the North for what she called provocations that are hurting ties between Seoul and Beijing.

'Difficult Times Ahead' For UK Economy: PM

Theresa May has welcomed signs that the economic reaction to Brexit has been better than anticipated, but cautioned against over optimism.

Speaking to reporters as she travelled to the G20 summit in China, the Prime Minister said: "We've seen figures giving some different messages in relation to the economy and I think the reaction of the economy has been better than some had predicted post the referendum.

"Now I'm not going to pretend it will be plain sailing. There'll be some difficult times ahead. Obviously we will be looking ahead to the Autumn Statement".

Chancellor Phillip Hammond is preparing a "fiscal reset" to respond to new Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) deficit projections, expected to add tens of billions to forecast borrowing in the aftermath of the Brexit vote.

:: China And US Ratify Climate Change Deal Ahead Of G20

Mr Hammond will also be attending the meeting in Hangzhou, which the Chinese government hopes will see a coordinated effort to boost a flagging world economy.

The visit is Mrs May's first to China, and she met President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Chinese President Xi Jinping in bilateral meetings.

In a joint news conference with Mr Obama, the pair downplayed concerns that Britain becomes a lower trading priority for the US after Brexit.

The US has been negotiating a broad EU trade deal and said ahead of the Brexit vote that Britain would go to the back of a line for a two-country deal if it left the EU.

However, Mr Obama insisted he never said Britain would be punished.

"We're going to do everything we can to make sure that the consequences of the decision don't end up unravelling what is already a very strong and robust economic relationship that can become even stronger in the future," he said.

But he did say that it wouldn't make sense for America to lose focus on its European trade talks.

Meanwhile, Sky News has seen a document detailing Japan's attitude to Brexit.

The Japanese government document warns: "In light of the fact that a number of Japanese businesses, invited by the Government in some cases, have invested actively to the UK, which was seen to be a gateway to Europe, and have established value-chains across Europe, we strongly request that the UK will consider this fact seriously and respond in a responsible manner to minimise any harmful effects on these businesses."

Elsewhere, the meeting with President Xi comes at a particularly sensitive time after her administration delayed approval for a Chinese-funded nuclear power station at Hinkley Point.

Members of Mrs May's team had, before joining Downing Street, expressed public scepticism about the security implications of the nuclear deal and about former Chancellor George Osborne's strategy of being China's closest ally in the West.

But Mrs May pointedly endorsed the Chinese government's description of that relationship, saying "this is a golden era" before flying to the summit.

She said she would not be hurried on the deal, but a decision will be announced later this month.

"This is the way I operate. I don't just come in and say I just made a decision.

"I actually look at the evidence, take the advice and then consider that and come to my decision.

"I'll be talking to President Xi about whole range of issues. I'm not going to be taking the nuclear decision now. It will be taken later this month."

:: PM Rules Out New General Election Before 2020

Mrs May will speak with world leaders from the 20 most important economies about the implications of Brexit for world growth and Britain's place in the world.

She suggested that there is a global backlash against free trade, and political leaders have to do more to ensure everyone feels its benefits.

"I want us to be a global leader in free trade, but we can't ignore that as we look at the G20, which is about global economies and growth, we can't ignore the fact that there is sentiment out there in a number of countries which is anti-globalisation," she said.

"We need to consider how we can make sure that when we put these free trade arrangements in place, they're actually going to benefit everybody."

Mrs May will also meet the Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull on the sidelines of the summit.

Australia has promised to share its experience in negotiated free trade deals, and to second experts to the new Department for International Trade.

Mrs May will also meet the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, and the Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud.

Pope Francis Declares Mother Teresa A Saint

The Pope has declared Mother Teresa - who worked with the dying and destitute in the Indian city of Kolkata - a saint.

Tens of thousands watched in St Peter's Square as Pope Francis held the canonisation mass for the nun, revered as one of the icons of the 20th century.

The service took place the day before the 19th anniversary of her death.

The pontiff said in Latin: "For the honour of the Blessed Trinity... we declare and define Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Kolkata) to be a Saint and we enroll her among the Saints, decreeing that she is to be venerated as such by the whole Church."

People started clapping and cheering even before he had finished speaking.

Thousands gather at the Vatican as Mother Teresa is declared a saint

Among the audience were hundreds of sisters from the Missionaries of Charity, the mission that Mother Teresa founded, with their trademark blue-trimmed saris.

Joining them were 1,500 homeless people and 13 heads of state or government.

The homeless people will be offered a lunch of pizza after the canonisation ceremony is completed, in honor of her work.

Saint Teresa of Kolkata, as she will now be known, founded and ran a mission for four decades in what was then Calcutta, one of India's largest cities where levels of deprivation were high.

Two members of the Missionaries of Charity, the order that Mother Teresa founded

She underwent beatification - the first step in the path to Sainthood - in 2003 when Pope John Paul II officially recognised as a miracle the apparent curing of a woman of cancer.

Monica Besra claims her stomach tumours disappeared after a medallion bearing Mother Teresa's image was placed on her stomach.

On Sunday, a second apparent miracle was acknowledged - the curing of a Brazilian man of a brain tumour.

Francis is understood to regard the nun as a model for his Jubilee Year of Mercy.

Japan's Unprecedented Warning To UK Over Brexit

At the start of the G20 Summit, the Japanese government has taken the unprecedented step of warning of a series of corporate exits, "great turmoil" and harmful effects if Brexit leads to the loss of single market privileges.

An official Japanese government task force on Brexit, has collated views of big Japanese companies from car companies to banks and pharmaceutical companies that invest in the UK.

It has produced a 15-page list titled "Japan's message to the UK and the EU", detailing requirements from Brexit negotiations.

It lists the consequences if the requirements are not delivered.

Half of Japanese investment in the EU comes to the UK including companies such as Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Nomura and Daiwa.

Mr Abe is likely to meet Theresa May later this month in New York.

"Japanese businesses with their European headquarters in the UK may decide to transfer their head-office function to Continental Europe if EU laws cease to be applicable in the UK after its withdrawal," the report concludes.

It says: "In light of the fact that a number of Japanese businesses, invited by the Government in some cases, have invested actively to the UK, which was seen to be a gateway to Europe, and have established value-chains across Europe, we strongly request that the UK will consider this fact seriously and respond in a responsible manner to minimise any harmful effects on these businesses."

The list is the most tangible account anywhere of what businesses are asking for from the Brexit negotiations.

It suggests Japanese car companies fear that they will be hit by a double whammy of trade tariffs.

There were fears of levies being imposed twice "once for auto parts imported from the EU and again for final products assembled in the UK to be exported to the EU - which would have a significant impact on their businesses.".

The report also states that the UK leaving the EU would damage exports from Britain to third countries because of trade privileges within the EU single market around so-called "rules of origin".

"Brexit would make such products unable to meet the rules of origin as EU products, which means that Japanese companies operating in the EU would not be able to enjoy the benefit of the Free Trade Areas concluded by the EU," the report said.

It also calls on the UK to "maintain access to workers who are nationals of the UK or the EU", saying the European labour market could suffer "great turmoil" if EU nationals could not freely travel between and stay in the UK and continental Europe.

The Japanese government warns its banks will move their European HQs out of London if the Brexit negotiations fail to secure the financial services passport to operate in the EU.

"If Japanese financial institutions are unable to maintain the single passport obtained in the UK, they would face difficulties in their business operations in the EU and might have to acquire corporate status within the EU anew and obtain the passport again, or to relocate their operations from the UK to existing establishments in the EU," said the report.

This concern has already been noted by the Bank of England, but this is the strongest indication yet of other nations spelling out the implications of some types of Brexit.

Those impacts also will be felt in the pharmaceutical industry, says the report, which sees the location of the EU's European Medicines Agency in London as crucial to the UK's high tech research appeal.

"Many Japanese pharmaceutical companies are operating in London, due to the EMA's location in London.

"If the EMA were to transfer to other EU Member States, the appeal of London as an environment for the development of pharmaceuticals would be lost, which could possibly lead to a shift in the flow of R&D funds and personnel to Continental Europe.

"This could force Japanese companies to reconsider their business activities," says the report.

PM Shinzo Abe warned of some of this ahead of the Brexit vote in a joint press conference with then-Prime Minister David Cameron.

UK officials reacted with astonishment that Japan had chosen to publish this list of concerns and demands.

PM Theresa May is likely to meet Mr Abe later this month in New York.

WWII Veteran Eileen Younghusband, Who Helped Stop Hitler's Rockets, Has Died

A Second World War veteran who used her maths talents to help foil Adolf Hitler's devastating V2 rockets has died at the age of 95.

Eileen Younghusband, of Sully in the Vale of Glamorgan, died on Friday night in a hospital in Cardiff. 

Mrs Younghusband was 19 years old when she joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force during World War Two.

She worked in filter rooms - the top secret hub of Britain's air defence - around Britain. Her vital work involved collecting radar information to identify German bombers and warn of air raids.

After D-Day, newly married Mrs Younghusband was sent to Belgium with a small team of women who used their maths talents to find the mobile launchers for the V2 rockets.

At the time the missiles were having a devastating impact on British cities.

During a recent interview, she described how they found the launch sites so the missiles could be destroyed.

"Our job was to extrapolate the curve of the V2 from the place it landed back to the launch site, and we did that once we knew the fall of shot and we got the position of the top of curve, we then used a slide rule in geometry to find the launch site," she told the BBC.

"And they managed to destroy them all by the end of February, beginning of March, 1945."

A V2 rocket on display in Trafalgar Square around 1945

Just after VE Day, Mrs Younghusband, a fluent French speaker, worked as a translator at the Breendonk concentration camp in Belgium to find out about the horrors that went on there.

In the decades that followed the war she became an author, worked in hotels and catering and even completed a degree in her eighties.

Her friend Hugh Turnbull, who was with her when she died, hailed her an "absolute inspiration".

"She was a remarkable woman, an inspirational figure, and she was tireless in promoting the work of the women who helped to defeat the Nazis," he said.

Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones tweeted: "Very sad to see that Eileen has died. A lovely lady and a real character. She will be sorely missed."

A life-size figure of Mrs Younghusband as a 21-year-old WAAF officer stands in a replica of a filter room at the Battle of Britain Museum at Bentley Priory.

London-born Mrs Younghusband moved to Wales in 1984 where she became known for her campaigning on health and education issues.

She was awarded the British Empire Medal in 2013 New Year honours for her work campaigning against cuts to adult education.

Farringdon Road in Clerkenwell, London, after a V2 rocket hit in 1945

She became passionate about the issue after completing her degree from the Open University at the age of 87.

After completing her degree, she published two autobiographies about her wartime experiences.

Her final book, Eileen's War, which was for children, was published just weeks before she died.

Quentin Younghusband, her nephew, described her as "an amazing woman" and recalled her "dogged" determination.

"Once she got her teeth into something it was to finish it," he said.

He added: "She wasn't fazed by any kind of male structure in whatever business she was involved in or whatever group she was involved with. 

"She really pushed the limits as an equal because she could do the job as well."

Prime Minister Theresa May Rules Out General Election Before 2020

The Prime Minister has ruled out calling a snap general election before 2020 to try and ensure "stability".

It comes after speculation Theresa May would take advantage of her poll lead over Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to try and bolster her fragile majority in the House of Commons.

However, in her first major interview since taking office, Mrs May said: "I'm not going to be calling a snap election.

"I've been very clear that I think we need that period of time, that stability - to be able to deal with the issues that the country is facing and have that election in 2020."

The PM also warned there will be "difficult times ahead" after the vote to leave the European Union, despite recent better than expected economic figures.

In a wide-ranging interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, she said: "I'm not going to pretend that it's all going to be plain sailing.

"I think we must be prepared for the fact that there may be some difficult times ahead. But what I am is optimistic."

Mrs May insisted that powers to limit EU immigration would be a priority in any exit deal.

"What leaving the European Union does enable us to do is to say what I think the British people are very clear about, which is that they don't want free movement to continue in the way that it has done in the past.

"They do want to see controls of movement of people coming in from the European Union. Now, obviously we're looking at what those options are."

People also want to see opportunities for jobs and the economy, the PM added, "so getting a good deal in trading goods and services is also obviously important for us".

Brexit Secretary David Davis will set out the Government's position on the Brexit deal in the House of Commons this week.

Mrs May was speaking ahead of her visit to China for the G20 summit of world leaders.

Her meeting with the Chinese President on Monday may be frosty after she delayed a decision to go ahead with the Hinkley Point nuclear power station, which is heavily backed by Chinese investment.

Mrs May promised a decision on the plant by the end of September after concerns were raised regarding national security.

She said: "I'm looking at the Hinkley decision ... As home secretary in the past, of course, and as Prime Minister, national security is a key issue for us.

"But in terms of that individual decision, I'll be looking at all aspects of it and come to a decision in September."

Mrs May also ruled out a second EU referendum, and said the Scottish people did not want another vote on independence.