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BOISE, Idaho - Federal authorities in Idaho said yesterday that they have arrested an Uzbekistan national accused of conspiring with a designated terrorist organization in his home country and helping scheme a plot to use a weapon of mass destruction.

BOISE, Idaho

- Federal authorities in Idaho said yesterday that they have arrested an Uzbekistan national accused of conspiring with a designated terrorist organization in his home country and helping scheme a plot to use a weapon of mass destruction.

The U.S. Attorney's Office announced that Fazliddin Kurbanov, 30, was arrested in Boise after a grand jury issued a three-count indictment as part of a terrorism investigation into his activities in Idaho and Utah.

The Idaho grand jury's indictment charges Kurbanov with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. The indictment also alleges he possessed an unregistered explosive device.

A separate federal grand jury in Utah also returned an indictment charging Kurbanov with distributing information about explosives, bombs and weapons of mass destruction.

Toilet-paper shortage wipes out Venezuela

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelans scrambled to stock up on toilet paper yesterday as fears of a bathroom emergency spread despite the socialist government's promise to import 50 million rolls.

After years of economic dysfunction, the country has gotten used to shortages of medicines and basic food items like milk and sugar, but the scarcity of bathroom tissue has caused unusual alarm.

President Nicolas Maduro, who was selected by the dying Hugo Chavez to carry on his "Bolivarian revolution," claims that anti-government forces, including the private sector, are causing the shortages in an effort to destabilize the country.

13 tornadoes wallop North Texas, 6 dead; Habitat homes among many devastated in 1 subdivision

Obama rips military brass for sex assault

WASHINGTON - President Obama said Thursday the nation's military leaders told him they are "ashamed" of their failure to end sexual abuse in the armed services. Obama pledged to "leave no stone unturned" in the effort to halt the abuse, which he said undermines the trust the military needs to be effective.

Obama also said he has asked Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Martin Dempsey to lead a process to root out the problem.

"They care about this and they are angry about it," Obama said at the White House, after he summoned Hagel, Dempsey and other top defense leaders to discuss a problem thrust to the fore by recent misconduct cases and a Pentagon report showing that up to 26,000 military members may have been sexually assaulted last year.

"I heard directly from all of them that they are ashamed by some of what's happened," Obama said.

Earlier Thursday, the Army's top officer acknowledged that his service is failing in its effort to stop sexual assaults.

- Daily News wire services