French police believe terror suspects are surrounded. Possible pings in AirAsia search. And a gospel music icon dies.
It’s Friday, and here are the 5 things to know for your New Day
FRANCE MANHUNT
Surrounded?: French police believe the terror suspects from the Charlie Hebdo shooting are surrounded in a town northeast of Paris. A massive police presence is in the area. A French member of parliament says the suspects have told police they’re ready to die as martyrs.
AIRASIA SEARCH
Possible pings: Divers are preparing to investigate underwater pings that may be coming from the flight recorders of AirAsia Flight QZ8501, Indonesia’s military chief said today. An Indonesian search vessel had earlier detected the pings, said Gen. Moeldoko, the head of Indonesia’s armed forces. Batteries that send out the pings last 30 days. It has been 13 days since the AirAsia plane fell into the sea with 162 people on board.
BILL COSBY
The joke’s on who?: In a rare reference to the sexual assault allegations against him, Bill Cosby told a woman attending his comedy show that, “you have to be careful about drinking around me.” The comment came during an otherwise lighthearted moment in his standup show last night in London, Ontario, as a woman near the front row got up to go get a drink and Cosby asked her where she was going. The remark is likely to anger his accusers who have demanded he respond to the allegations of sexual abuse against him.
ROD TAYLOR
Movie star gone: Australian-born actor Rod Taylor, who starred in Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller, “The Birds,” died this week in Los Angeles. Taylor was 84. Taylor appeared in dozens of films, including “The Time Machine,” “The Train Robbers” and “Sunday in New York.” In his final role, he played Winston Churchill in the 2009 movie, “Inglourious Basterds,” with Brad Pitt.
ANDRAE CROUCH
Music icon: Gospel music legend Andrae Crouch, a seven-time Grammy winner, has died at a Los Angeles-area hospital. Crouch revolutionized gospel music in the 1970s, giving it a power and verve that propelled him out of the church and into the mainstream. Bob Dylan, Elton John, Paul Simon, Elvis Presley and Little Richard covered his songs. Crouch also directed the choirs that sang on Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” and Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror.”