10 things you need to know today: January 13, 2015

(Image credit: (Christian Petersen/Getty Images))

1. Charlie Hebdo unveils its first cover since massacre

Charlie Hebdo is putting a cartoon of Islam's Prophet Muhammad on the cover of this week's issue — the first since two Islamist gunmen reportedly angered over past Muhammad cartoons killed 12 people at the satirical newspaper's Paris office. The image features Muhammad shedding a tear and holding a sign reading, "Je suis Charlie," the slogan used by the magazine's supporters since the massacre. The page also reads, "Tout est pardonne," all is forgiven. The paper will print a million copies, instead of the usual 60,000.

2. Ohio State beats Oregon to take the inaugural college playoff title

The Ohio State Buckeyes upset the Oregon Ducks 42-20 on Monday night to win the first College Football Playoff championship. The Buckeyes were led by third-string quarterback Cardale Jones, who stepped up in the playoffs after Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett were injured, and running back Ezekiel Elliott, who rushed for 246 yards and four touchdowns. It was the third No. 1 finish for third-year Buckeyes Coach Urban Meyer, who coached Florida to championships in 2006 and 2008.

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Los Angeles Times

3. Judge strikes down South Dakota's gay marriage ban

A federal judge in South Dakota on Monday overturned the state's same-sex marriage ban, saying it was unconstitutional because marriage is a fundamental right that must be open to all. The ruling paves the way for a test on gay marriage in the Eighth Circuit appeals court, one of four circuits that have yet to rule on the issue. Five circuits have thrown out such bans, and one has upheld them. The Eighth Circuit includes Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota.

Scotusblog

4. Six members of Paris terrorist cell could be on the loose

As many as six members of the terrorist cell behind the Charlie Hebdo massacre and an attack on a kosher market in Paris could still be at large, French police said Monday. Authorities are searching for a Mini Cooper registered to Hayat Boumeddiene, the common-law wife of Amedy Coulibaly, who was killed when police stormed the grocery where he reportedly murdered four hostages. France is deploying 10,000 troops to protect Jewish schools and other "sensitive sites."

Haaretz

5. Indonesia recovers AirAsia cockpit voice recorder

Divers on Tuesday recovered the cockpit voice recorder from AirAsia Flight 8501, which crashed into the Java Sea on Dec. 28, killing all 162 people on board. The other so-called black box, the flight data recorder, was retrieved on Monday. The voice recorder, which holds two hours of conversations between the pilots and air-traffic control, and the data recorder will be analyzed in Jakarta for clues on what caused the crash.

BBC News

6. Pro-ISIS hackers breach military Twitter and YouTube accounts

The Twitter and YouTube accounts of the U.S. Central Command were hijacked on Monday by hackers claiming to be working for the Islamic State. "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, the CyberCaliphate continues its CyberJihad," one Twitter post said. The hackers posted threats against the U.S. military, and documents that appeared to be public records. CENTCOM said that no classified information had been compromised, calling the attack a case of "cybervandalism."

Wired

7. Oil hits a new six-year low

Oil prices continued their downward spiral on Tuesday, with the Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude oil benchmarks dropping to around $45 a barrel. Futures prices on Monday fell by 5 percent and reached a low not seen since early 2009 during the Great Recession, marking a 55 percent drop since June — one of the fastest and deepest plunges ever. The latest sell-off came after Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazroui, oil minister of the United Arab Emirates, reaffirmed that OPEC would not cut production despite a global glut.

Reuters The New York Times

8. Smoke fills Washington, D.C., metro train, killing one passenger

One Washington, D.C., Metrorail passenger died and more than 80 were treated at local hospitals after smoke filled the downtown L'Enfant Plaza station on Monday. Two people were listed in critical condition, and 81 were treated for smoke inhalation. Authorities temporarily closed the station while passengers were evacuated from a disabled train. Passengers said there appeared to have been an electrical malfunction on the six-car, Northern-Virginia-bound Yellow line train.

NPR WUSA-TV

9. Romney reportedly says he will "almost certainly" make another run for the White House

Mitt Romney has started reassembling the team from his unsuccessful 2012 presidential bid, after reportedly telling a senior Republican that he "almost certainly will" launch a campaign for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016. It would be his third bid for the White House. Romney's 2012 vice presidential running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) announced on Monday that he would not be running for president.

The Washington Post

10. Times reporter won't be forced to testify on leak

The Justice Department said Monday that it would not compel New York Times reporter James Risen to testify at the trial of former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling, who is charged with leaking details about a botched operation to disrupt Iran's nuclear program. Risen, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, had been battling for seven years to prevent the government from forcing him to identify his sources in a case that became a flashpoint for criticism of the Obama administration's crackdown on leakers.

Reuters The New York Times

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.