Now that Pope Benedict XVI is opting for an early retirement, the speculation over who will succeed him is bound to last until the announcement (which could be as soon as Easter). Many hope the next in line will represent the diverse world, now that 42 percent of the world's one billion Catholics come from Latin America and 15 percent are African. Top contendors are Cardinal Angelo Scola, the archbishop of Milan; Cardinal Marc Ouellet, a Canadian favorite of Benedict's; the Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Appiah Turkson; Argentinian Cardinal Leonardo Sandril; and, for the first time, an American hopeful, Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Of course, this is one race where there are still no women allowed.

State media is reporting that despite U.N. warnings, North Korea successfully denonated a nuclear device. The confirmation comes after suspicious seismic activity was detected in North Korea early Tuesday, sparking speculation and reports that the rogue nation had conducted another nuclear test. The earthquake happened in an area that does not see natural seismic actions, and is near North Korea's nuclear facility. A spokesman for South Korea's defense minister said Tuesday that there was a high possibility of a nuclear detonation, and that Pyongyang had confirmed the activity to Seoul and Washington. The U.S. government did not immediately comment on what it had heard from the North Korean government.

Two years after Egyptian despot Hosni Mubarak was ousted from 30 years in power, Egyptian protestors took to the streets protesting President Mohammed Morsi's rule. Opposition factions accuse him of imposing an authoritarian regime and betraying the original revolutionary goals. "The people want to bring down the regime!" demonstrators yelled outside the presidential palace. Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them. The demonstrations have been going on since the eve of the second anniversary of the revolution at the end of January, and Morsi says the groups behind the violence will be held "politically accountable."

Two men have been detailed and charged in the attack that took the life of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton as she took shelter from the rain in a Chicago park. Michael Ward and Kenneth Williams are being charged with one count each of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder for the attack that injured two and killed Pendleton, who had just returned from performing at President Obama’s inauguration ceremony. The men are members of a street gang and were taken into custody on Sunday—the day after Michelle Obama attended the young girl’s funeral.

It's been five days with little sign of rogue ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner, but prosecutors anticipating his capture have filed murder and attempted murder charges against him for allegedly killing three people. If found and tried, Dorner could face the death penalty. He is suspected to be in the area of Big Bear Mountain, and investigators offering a $1 million reward have received at least 700 tips. Border authorities on both sides have boosted security around the points of entry into Mexico. Funeral services for one victim, Officer Michael Crain, will be held on Wednesday.

In the eyes of gun-rights advocates, Rep. Steve Stockman will have one of the hottest dates at Tuesday night's State of the Union address: Ted Nugent. Each member of Congress is allowed to bring one guest to the president's annual speech, and the Republican from Texas is "excited" to have gun-loving rocker Ted Nugent as his. Gun control is expected to be the hot topic of discussion Tuesday, and more than 20 Democrats have already confirmed that they're bringing victims of gun violence as their guests. Nugent says he will attend the speech, but that he won't be packing heat: "I live a well-armed life, and I’ve got to demilitarize before I go," Nugent said. Nugent was interviewed by the Secret Service last year after he said that he'd be “either be dead or in jail by this time next year” if Obama got reelected.

A group of several students, parents, and at least one teacher at Sullivan High School in Sullivan, Indiana, is lobbying for a “traditional prom” that would ban gay students from attending. Administrators at Sullivan High School are not in support of the movement, so the group is considering the possibility of a “separate but equal” prom at which no gays will be allowed. “We want to make the public see that we love the homosexuals, but we don’t think it’s right nor should it be accepted,” said student Bonnie McCammon. A countercampaign has been launched by those who believe prom should be enjoyed by all students, and one gay student spoke in support of the school, calling it very accepting of same-sex couples and gay students.

The man who shot dead two women and injured two police officers this morning at a courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware has been identified as David Matusiewicz, a former optometrist with a criminal past. Matusiewicz, 45, was declared dead on the scene after allegedly killing his ex-wife and another woman. Authorities say Matusiewicz spent four years in prison after kidnapping his three daughters amid a custody dispute. He was on the lam with his girls for two years before authorities found him in 2009, when he was sentenced for the kidnapping and bank fraud.

Where's the beef? French officials summoned meat industry chiefs to talks with ministers as the fallout from the scandal over horsemeat labeled as beef spread to 16 countries. Seven French supermarket chains withdrew frozen beef meals made by Findus and Comigel, and Food Minister Guillaume Garot said he wanted to make sure all questionable products were off the shelves. The scandal has already affected distributors in Britain, France, Sweden, Ireland, and Romania, and many fear it could have spread to 11 other countries as a result of the complex food supply chain in the European Union. The meat has been traced back to Romanian slaughterhouses, and an investigation has indicated the horsemeat was intentionally packaged as beef as part of a criminal conspiracy.

No more waiting for Mumford & Sons. The British folk group took home Album of the Year for Babel at the Grammys on Sunday, as the awards show gave away top honors to younger generation acts. Electronic pop artist Gotye and New Zealand singer Kimbra took home Record of the Year for “Somebody That I Used to Know,” one of the biggest-selling singles of 2012 but also a song that first found its footing on YouTube. New York indie trio fun., which hit big with “We Are Young,” took home Best New Artist, beating out the Lumineers and Frank Ocean. Ocean didn’t go home empty-handed though: he won for his collaboration song “No Church in the Wild” and also Best Urban Contemporary Album for Channel Orange, directly beating out Chris Brown.

Pope Benedict XVI will resign on Monday, effective February 28, the Vatican has confirmed—the first time a pope has resigned since 1415. In a statement, the pope, 85, said his health had deteriorated over recent months “to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.” He also said he is resigning in full freedom and is “fully aware of the gravity of this gesture.” Benedict had reportedly wanted his predecessor, John Paul II, to resign when his health was failing. The Vatican said the papacy will be vacant until a new successor is chosen.

The good news: your cruise is free. The bad? It won't end for another two days, and the power is out, along with many of the toilets. More than 4,200 passengers and crew are adrift off Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula after an engine fire knocked out power on their Carnival cruise ship Sunday morning. Carnival says many of the toilets are coming back online (passengers had to use buckets on Sunday), but the air conditioning is dead, and some passengers spent the night on deck in tents. A Coast Guard cutter is supposed to pull the ship to Progreso, Mexico—the port nearest to where the boat is stranded—by Wednesday.

Dangerous tornadoes swept through Mississippi and Alabama on Sunday, injuring at least 10 and causing serious damage at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. The twister tore through Hattiesburg’s main streets, damaging homes and businesses along the way. It also tore through the adjacent town of Petal, about 100 miles southeast of Jackson, damaging at least 100 homes as well as several businesses. Forrest County Sheriff Billy McGee said none of the reported injuries were serious, and there were no fatalities reported in the four Mississippi counties. In southwestern Alabama, seven tornadoes were reported across three counties, including one that damaged 46 homes in neighboring Clark County.

A lot of veterans are struggling to adjust to civilian life, even the man who killed Osama bin Laden. In a lengthy interview with Esquire, the SEAL Team 6 member who shot the terrorist leader recounts stories of brutal missions from his 16 years in the Navy, but life in the U.S. is turning out to be scary in its own way: retiring 36 months before the official date, he's without a pension, stuck paying $500 a month for private health insurance and waiting months for his disability claims to be adjudicated. The article is full of other details about the mission and the SEAL’s life afterward. He gave his rifle magazine to the female CIA analyst who helped find bin Laden, the Navy offered him a witness protection-style job driving a beer truck under an assumed identity, and his kids, after he told them not to use bin Laden’s name in public, have opted for “Poopyface.”

Here's the latest sign that gun control will figure heavily in President Obama's State of the Union address tomorrow. Democrats in the House of Representatives are bringing victims of gun violence to the speech, as part of a push to get new gun laws passed. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi will bring a fourth-grader from a Newtown, Connecticut, elementary school, although the girl did not attend Sandy Hook, and Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison said he is bringing a young man named Sami Rahamim, whose father died in a “tragic event in Minneapolis.” Around 30 Democrats are planning on bringing victims of gun violence. President Obama has proposed a slew of gun-control measures, some of which, like universal background checks, have wide public support, while others, like a ban on assault weapons, are more controversial.

Take that, Rex Reed. Melissa McCarthy’s Identity Thief brought in a whopping $36.6 million in its opening weekend, one of the top five opening weekends ever for an R-rated comedy, and a surprise especially with a blizzard paralyzing the Northeast that resulted in an estimated 10 percent decline in ticket sales. Identity Thief is McCarthy’s first starring vehicle since her breakout role in 2011’s Bridesmaids, and producers later adapted the role for her after seeing that film. In its second week, the zombie rom-com Warm Bodies came in second, bringing in $11.5 million, while Steven Soderbergh’s Side Effects came in third with $10 million. But one of the biggest surprises may have been Ben Affleck’s Argo, which brought in $2.5 million in its 18th week, coming back into the top 10 at No. 8.

Mexican authorities arrested five people Sunday in connection with the horrific rapes of six tourists in Acapulco last week. No information has been released about the arrestees yet, although investigators had originally said there were seven suspects. In a case that has garnered worldwide attention, hooded gunmen burst into a house in the resort town, raping six Spanish women while tying up their male companions. At least 50 investigators have been dedicated to the case.

Indian officials said Monday that overcrowding was to blame for a deadly stampede a day earlier that killed 36 at a train station during the Kumbh Mela festival. The railway minister insisted “adequate arrangements” had been made for the festival, but too many people had crammed onto the platform, causing the stampede. At least 39 others were injured, and officials said many of the victims were women and children. Additional trains will be run Monday to get some of the people out of Allahabad, where the festival is taking place. The event, held every 12 years, is expected to bring 100 million bathers to the Sangam—the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers. The head of organizing the festival resigned, saying he was stepping down on “moral grounds.”

Melanne Verveer, the first-ever U.S. ambassador for global women’s issues, left the White House on Friday for Georgetown University, where she will head the new Institute on Women, Peace and Security. Prior to her time in the Obama administration, Verveer served as chief of staff for then-first lady Hillary Clinton—and Verveer has remained a close friend and adviser since then. In the Obama administration, Verveer visited more than 60 countries and has been dedicated to increasing women and girls’ access to education and health care throughout the globe.

Malian rebels launched a guerrilla attack over the weekend against French forces in the northern city of Gao, just two weeks after France had cleared the city of the al Qaeda–linked insurgents. The Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack, as well as a suicide blast on Friday in the city that killed only the bomber. The rebels, armed with AK-47s, used canoes to cross the Niger River to enter Gao, northern Mali’s most populous city. By Monday morning, French forces surrounded the city’s police center, although it was unclear how many troops on either side had been killed.