Wednesday's news in under 5 minutes: January 14, 2015.

The latest roundup of the major news stories from Australia and around the world.

1. Charlie Hebdo magazine

The cartoonist and editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo have appeared before the world’s press speaking of their decision to feature the prophet Mohammed on the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo – which will be released today.

The cover depicts the prophet Mohammed holding a sign which reads ‘Je suis Charlie’. He is crying a single tear and above him are the words ‘Tout est pardonné (All is forgiven)’.

You can see the cover here. 

In an emotional press conference a weeping cartoonist Renald ‘Luz’ Luzier said the image represented “just a little guy who’s crying.”

Shaking and fidgeting he said, “The only idea left was to draw Mohammed, I am Charlie. Then I looked at him, he was crying. Then above, I wrote: “All is forgiven”, and then cried. We had the front page, we had finally found this bloody front page. This was our front page.

This was not the front page the world wanted us to draw, it was our front page.

This is not the front page that the terrorists want us to draw, as there are no terrorists in it, just a man who cries: it’s Mohammed. I am sorry that we drew him again, but the Mohammed we drew is a Mohammed who is crying above all.”

Luz, as he is known escaped the massacre because he had overslept by half an hour. He said, “We are cartoonists and we like drawing little characters, just as we were as children.

The terrorists, they were kids, they drew just like we did, just like all children do.

At one point, they lost their sense of humour. At one point, they lost the soul of their child which allowed them to look at the world with a certain distance.”

Reaction to the cover, which was released yesterday, has been mixed with some calling it magnificent, but officials in Egypt saying it was deliberately provocative.

2. Those who sell it are “committing acts of war.”

A radical preacher in the UK Anjem Choudray has said that the upcoming edition of Charlie Hedbo is an “an act of war” and warned there will be “repercussions”.

In Australia Muslim community leader Keysar Trad and refugee advocate Jamal Daoud refused to condemn the magazine. Speaking to The Australian they said that while they disagreed with depicting Mohammed in this manner  they supported the magazine’s right to publish whatever it liked, irrespective of what people might think.

The magazine will go on sale around the world today with three million copies being produced.

 3. Funerals for seven Paris victims

Funeral ceremonies have been held for seven of the people shot dead in last week’s attacks in Paris.

“Our great and beautiful France will never break, will never yield, never bend” in the face of the Islamist threat that is “still there, inside and outside” he said.

Four men killed at a kosher supermarket have also been buried in Jerusalem.

For more read this post here.

 4. Andrew Chan “to be executed”

 5. Boy attacked for having red hair

The 15-year old son of an AFL champion has admitted bashing a schoolboy while they waited for the bus after school and knocking him unconscious all because he had red hair.

The 15-year old king hit him and punched the boy. The only reason he gave to justify the attack saying it was ‘because the boy had red hair’.

The boy is reported to have a “football star father.”

It is reported that other students have said they too have been victims of this bully.

 6. QZ8501 cockpit voice recorder found

Divers have retrieved the cockpit voice recorder from AirAsia flight QZ8501 the next step in determining why it crashed.

The recorder was sighted in 30 meters of water Monday, not far from where searchers recovered the first black box.

The first black box was recovered on Monday after an intensive search of the Java Sea and flown to Jakarta the same day. Investigators say the two data recorders offer the best chance of learning why the aircraft crashed.

 7. Prime Minister under pressure to change gender reporting requirements.

News Limited reports that the Prime Minister, Tony Abbott is under pressure from employer groups to change the gender reporting requirements following reports from the Department of Employment which says the scheme is too time consuming and involves too much red tape.

8. Should the Sydney siege hostages get bravery awards?

There is debate this morning over whether the survivors of the Sydney siege should be awarded bravery certificates. The Prime Minister, Tony Abbott has previously suggested that Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove support a push to honour the victims, surviving hostages and emergency services with bravery awards.

“They should get recognition for what they suffered as hostages but I don’t think they should get bravery awards.”

“Maybe they could have done something more to protect the women.”

“Normally bravery awards are given for an act of bravery – that somebody actually does something. They haven’t done anything.”

 9. UK on alert for beheading attack

10. Father dies saving daughter

Another father has died after attempting to save his daughter who was struggling in the surf.

The Illawara Mercury reports that the man rescued his daughter who was in trouble near Minnamurra in NSW yesterday Tuesday afternoon.

Paramedics attempted to revive the 49-year old but he died at the scene. Inspector Norm Rees said “The father had gone in to help her and he got caught in the rip,”

“He is believed to have fought out of the rip and got to the beach and collapsed.”

“He must have overexerted himself and put a load on his heart and it looks like he has had a heart attack.

“Unfortunately he failed to respond to treatment at the scene and he was pronounced deceased.”

The man’s death comes just weeks after a father died after rescuing his children who got into trouble in a NSW river.

 11. When should you give your child a phone?

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher said many parents were unsure of what devices their children should use and at what age.

“That’s certainly the kind of thing that the children’s e-safety commissioner would be in a position to provide advice to parents about,” The Australian reports.

 12. Measles warning for QLD

A man infected with measles has spent more than 30 minutes at a Bunnings store prompting health authorities to issue a warning.

Metro South Health says the man was at the hardware store in Mt Gravatt between 8am and 8.30am Saturday.

Public health physician Dr Kari Jarvinen said “Measles is one of the most infectious of all communicable diseases and is spread by tiny droplets through coughing and sneezing.”

“True measles is a serious viral infection that causes fever, cough, runny nose, then a red spotty rash and sore eyes a few days later.”

13. Junk food banned at playground

The website for the council says “All sweet, fatty or fast food or drink is banned from the playground and must be consumed before entering. If you would like your food or drink put away for you whilst in the playground, please see a staff member.”

Child psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg said that parents, not authorities, should be pushing their children to eat well.

News Limited reports that the “Parents’ Jury” support the ban and would like to see other playgrounds follow suit. While the Dietitians Association of Australia spokeswoman Julie Gilbert said the ban was a “good starting point, but better educating children about the dangers of junk food would be more effective in the long term.”