Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Japanese automaker Toyota said Thursday it was suspending tests of its self-driving cars so staff could “emotionally process” after an autonomous Uber car killed a pedestrian in an accident. Ride-sharing giant Uber has already suspended use of self-driving cars after one of its vehicles struck …

Did you know? Eye-drops could replace spectacles Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Scientists at Bar-IlanUniversity’s Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, in Tel Aviv, Israel, claim to have created some truly revolutionary eye-drops that can heal damaged corneas and improve vision. Described as “a new concept for correcting refractory …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP | On the streets of Cairo’s Shubra district, many Coptic Christians — but not all — say they will support President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in his re-election bid on Monday. Pro-Sisi banners hang overhead in the neighbourhood where many Copts reside, often showing the president standing …

Kigali, Rwanda | AFP | Forty-four African countries have signed an agreement establishing a free trade area seen as vital to the continent’s economic development, the head of the African Union said Wednesday. The creation of a free trade area — billed as the world’s largest in terms of participating …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Tanzanian police said Wednesday they had arrested a driver and a farmer accused of urging fellow citizens to protest against the increasing authoritarianism of President John Magufuli on social media. A call for nationwide protests on April 26, first launched by an opposition activist, has …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda’s motorcycle hailing firm, SafeBoda, has unveiled a new year-long campaign dubbed YourCityRide aimed at encouraging people to go out and discover the best of Kampala City. The campaign will feature among others, city tour, street food festival and a boda themed street fashion …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Egypt’s administrative court issued a ruling on Tuesday stopping the operations of ride sharing apps Uber and Careem, state media reported. Both services had sparked protests by taxi drivers who complained that their drivers were not required to pay the hefty fees to operate transportation …

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | The European Union pushed Tuesday for an urgent investigation into revelations that a firm working for Donald Trump presidential campaign harvested data on 50 million users. EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova, who has called the breach “horrifying”, was meanwhile to seek clarification from the social …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo have exposed more than 200 unqualified magistrates, an official source said Tuesday. A commission of enquiry formed in October to probe the qualifications and recruitment conditions of more than 3,000 magistrates found that hundreds “should not be …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s military was on Tuesday accused of ignoring repeated warnings about the movements of Boko Haram fighters before they kidnapped 110 schoolgirls in the country’s restive northeast. The students — the youngest of whom is aged just 10 — were seized from the town of …