Oslo, Norway | AFP |  Electric or hybrid vehicles accounted for more than half of all new cars sold in Norway last year, official data showed on Wednesday, confirming the country’s pioneering role in carbon-free transport. Zero-emission, mainly all-electric as well as a few hydrogen-powered cars, accounted for 20.9 percent …

  Paris, France | AFP |  Alcohol damages the DNA of stem cells responsible for producing new blood, according to a mouse study which may explain the link between drinking and cancer, scientists said on Wednesday. Health watchdogs have long warned that alcohol consumption contributes to seven types of cancer …

Accra, Ghana | AFP | Liverpool star Mohamed Salah hopes to add the African Player of the Year award in Ghana Thursday to his rapidly expanding collection of individual honours. The Egyptian, scorer of 23 goals in all competitions midway through his first season at Anfield, has been voted BBC …

  New York, United States | AFP |  Luxturna, a medication against hereditary degeneration of the retina that can lead to total blindness, will be sold for $850,000 in the United States, making it one of the world’s most expensive medical treatments. It is administered in a single dose, according …

  New York, United States | AFP | Music sales grew at a robust pace for a third straight year in the United States in 2017 as listeners kept flocking to streaming outlets, an industry monitor said Wednesday. Analytical firm BuzzAngle Music said that consumption in the world’s largest music …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  The leader of the local authority covering Windsor Castle has called for police action against “aggressive begging” ahead of Prince Harry’s wedding there in May, it emerged on Wednesday. Simon Dudley, the leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, wrote to the …

Tehran, Iran | AFP |  Violent demonstrations have rocked Iran for almost a week, leaving at least 21 people dead, with the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Wednesday declaring the “end of the sedition”. The protests that started over the economy before turning against the Islamic regime as a …

Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump unleashed a spectacular denunciation of one of his closest political allies Wednesday, describing his former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon as insane and irrelevant. The statement from the president came after the release of explosive excerpts from a new …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Hector Bellerin came to Arsenal’s rescue as the defender’s last-gasp strike earned a dramatic 2-2 draw in a heated London derby against Chelsea on Wednesday. Bellerin looked set to be the villain of the piece for Arsenal after the Spaniard’s foul on Eden Hazard conceded a penalty that allowed …

Malabo, Equatorial Guinea | AFP | Equatorial Guinea is ruled by Africa’s longest-serving president, Teodoro Obiang Nguema, who took power by overthrowing his uncle and has since weathered several coup attempts himself. After claims of a new attempt late December, here is some background about the small nation tainted by …