The 10 Most Important Things In The World Right Now

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President Obama

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Barack Obama gives a thumbs up to Secretary of State John Kerry (R) as he departs after concluding his State of the Union address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, January 20, 2015

Hello! Here's what you need to know for Wednesday.

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1. President Barack Obama delivered his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday, in which he discussed progressive policies branded "middle class economics" and announced he will ask Congress to officially authorise military action against the jihadist group Islamic State.

2. Four men accused of helping Paris gunman Amedy Coulibaly are the first to be charged in the terror attacks.

3. Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo plans to sue Fox News over false reports that some Muslim areas of the French capital are "no-go zones."

4. Australia mining giant BHP said it would shut down 40% of its US shale oil rigs by the end of its financial year.

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5. Indonesia's transport minister said Tuesday that the AirAsia jet that crashed into the Java Sea in December climbed at a "beyond normal" speed to avoid a storm and then stalled.

6. US oil services giant Baker Hughes said it expects to lay off about 7,000 employees as crude prices keep falling.

7. Scientists say the current strain of Ebola virus is mutating in a way that could make experimental drugs, like ZMapp, less effective.

8. After 35 years, the US and Cuba will begin talks about restoring diplomatic ties.

9. FIFA is giving Brazil $100 million after the country spent $15 billion organising last year's World Cup.

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10. Elon Musk's SpaceX raised $1 billion from Google and Fidelity, which together will own just under 10% of the private spaceflight company.

And finally...

1,700 private jets are flying tons of billionaires and celebrities to Davos in Switzerland over the next few days for the 45th annual World Economic Forum.