AP Top News at 1:44 p.m. EST

(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Obama asks lawmakers for short-term sequester fixWASHINGTON (AP) _ President Barack Obama is asking Congress to come up with tens of billions of dollars in short-term spending cuts and tax revenue to delay automatic spending cuts scheduled to kick in March 1. Obama said Tuesday he still believes the nation should move forward with a broad package for tax reform and spending cuts. But he says if Congress can't act before the March 1 deadline, lawmakers should at least pass a smaller package to stave off the damaging effects of the across-the-board cuts.

Bulgaria links Hezbollah to bombing of IsraelisSOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) _ Hezbollah was behind a bus attack that killed five Israeli tourists in Bulgaria last year, investigators said Tuesday, describing a sophisticated bombing carried out by a terrorist cell that included Canadian and Australian citizens. The first major announcement in the investigation carried broad diplomatic implications, as countries that consider the Shiite militant group to be a terrorist organization called on Europe _ which has resisted such a move _ to crack down on the group.

Terrorists with Western links a growing threatThey are called "homegrown terrorists," Western citizens highly prized by Islamic militant groups because they can move across borders and carry out attacks easier than people from Middle East or South Asian nations. Two such people _ one Canadian and one Australian _ are believed to have been involved in the July 18 bus bombing in Bulgaria that killed five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian driver, according to Bulgarian investigators. Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov of Bulgaria said the two were members of the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militant group Hezbollah, which in turn is linked to Iran.

Dell in $24.4B founder-led deal to go privateSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Slumping personal computer maker Dell is bowing out of the stock market in a $24.4 billion buyout that represents the largest deal of its kind since the Great Recession dried up the financing for such risky maneuvers. The complex agreement announced Tuesday will allow Dell Inc.'s management, including founder Michael Dell, to attempt a company turnaround away from the glare and financial pressures of Wall Street.

Iran president visits Egypt in warming of tiesCAIRO (AP) _ Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad discussed the crisis in Syria with his Egyptian counterpart Tuesday in the first visit by an Iranian leader to Cairo in more than three decades, marking a historic departure from years of frigid ties between the regional heavyweights. Ahmadinejad's three-day visit, which is centered around an Islamic summit, is the latest sign of efforts by Egypt's Islamist President Mohammed Morsi to improve relations, which have been cut since Iran's 1979 revolution.

US sues S&P over pre-crisis mortgage ratingsWASHINGTON (AP) _ The U.S. government says Standard & Poor's knowingly inflated its ratings on risky mortgage investments that helped trigger the 2008 financial crisis. The credit rating agency gave high marks to mortgage-backed securities because it wanted to earn more business from the banks that issued the investments, the Justice Department alleges in charges filed in federal court in Los Angeles .

Memo gives basis for drone strikes vs US citizensWASHINGTON (AP) _ An unclassified Justice Department memo reveals that the Obama administration has had more lenient rules than publicly known for when drone attacks can be launched to kill U.S. citizens working abroad with terrorists. The government does not need evidence that a specific attack is imminent, the newly disclosed Justice Department white paper says, only that the targeted suspect is involved in ongoing plotting against the United States.

LAPD reviews LA clergy abuse filesLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Los Angeles police are reviewing recently released clergy abuse files to see if there's evidence of criminal activity by members of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, including the failure to report child abuse to authorities. Cmdr. Andrew Smith said Tuesday the LAPD is focusing on the cases of about a dozen previously investigated priests and is auditing them to make sure nothing was missed.

Family celebrates boy's rescue from Ala. bunkerMIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) _ An Alabama family celebrated the rescue of a 5-year-old held hostage for a week in an underground bunker as authorities painstakingly checked for bombs on the abductor's property Tuesday, a day after a police raid left the man dead. The FBI and other law enforcement officials left plenty of questions open about how they made the call to rush in and what happened inside the closet-sized hideout on the rural property, where the boy had been held by Jimmy Lee Dykes. But relatives said there was no question about the relief they feel.

New keyboard BlackBerry in US could take monthsTORONTO (AP) _ A modern BlackBerry with a physical keyboard might not arrive in the U.S. until May or June, a month or two behind other parts of the world, the chief executive of the smartphone maker suggested in an interview. Although Research in Motion Ltd. CEO Thorsten Heins said the exact release date will depend on each wireless provider, he said the physical keyboard version, the BlackBerry Q10, will likely be released eight to 10 weeks after a carrier releases a model with only a touch screen, the BlackBerry Z10. The Z10 is expected in the U.S. in mid-March, so eight to 10 weeks brings the U.S. date for the Q10 to mid-May to early June.

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