Analysis: Modi's Gujarat growth model might not work across India

SURAT, India (Reuters) - Turning a single Indian state with a long tradition of entrepreneurship and a solid political majority into an investor-friendly economic powerhouse is one thing.
Replicating that experience across a diverse country of 1.2 billion would be a tougher prospect for Narendra Modi, whose leadership of booming Gujarat state has led to his being touted as a potential candidate to become India's next prime minister.
While Modi wins praise even from critics for cutting red tape and making government more responsive and predictable, many ingredients for Gujarat's run of growth were in place well before he took office in 2001.
"It is like an icing on cake sort of thing. You have a nice cake and Modi has done a lot of good icing," said Rakesh Chaudhary, director of Pratibha Group, a textile manufacturer in Palsana on the outskirts of the Gujarat city of Surat.
Industry in Gujarat is helped by a long coastline and plenty of barren land that is easy to turn over to factory use.
The power that comes from a long-standing and heavy majority for his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state also gives Modi an advantage that he would not enjoy on a national stage marked by fractious coalition politics.
Despite a controversial past - Modi is accused by critics of not doing enough to stop or of even quietly encouraging religious riots in 2002 that saw as many as 2,000 killed, most of them Muslims - he has established a reputation as an economic reformer in part by building on the strengths of Gujarat and marketing them heavily.
Modi's marketing savvy, aided by the Washington lobbying and public affairs firm APCO Worldwide, will be on display at the biennial "Vibrant Gujarat Summit" that begins on Friday.
Initiated by Modi in 2003 to attract investment after the violence and an earthquake in 2001, the event is attended by thousands of corporate officials who pledge billions in investment, although in reality only a fraction has seen the light of day. Of 12.4 trillion rupees ($225 billion) in investment proposed at the 2009 event, just 8.5 percent had been spent as of November 2011, according to state government data.
"Under Modi's regime, there has been significant improvement in infrastructure growth, significant improvement in industrialization, as well as agriculture," said Jahangir Aziz, senior Asia economist at JPMorgan. "But what has been overplayed is initial conditions were actually pretty decent in Gujarat."
HIGHER OFFICE?
The stocky Modi, who favors traditional Indian attire and a clipped white beard, plays down any prime ministerial ambitions.
But his popularity in Gujarat - the BJP won 115 of the state assembly's 182 seats in a December election - has fuelled speculation that he could lead his Hindu nationalist party in 2014 against India's ruling Congress party, which has been beset by corruption scandals and overseen a sharp economic slowdown.
"His economic record in Gujarat is obviously something which matters a lot to the middle classes. That, coupled with strong leadership," said Swapan Dasgupta, an analyst with links to the BJP who expects Modi to be the party standard-bearer in 2014.
Critics say that while Modi has indeed encouraged investment and helped bring reliable electricity and law and order, double-digit growth has not been shared broadly enough. In the five years through March 2010, some states - including Tamil Nadu and Karnataka - did better at bringing down poverty levels.
"Big business people get a lot from the government and scheduled caste people (minorities) get a lot, but people like us who are in between get nothing," said Bhupendra Thakkar, 50, who earns 6,000 rupees ($109) a month selling fruit near Surat's decrepit railway station.
FRIEND OF BUSINESS
Modi lured Tata Motors to the state in 2008 after the company's plans to build a factory for its low-cost Nano car were thwarted by farmers in West Bengal.
Ford Motor Co and Maruti Suzuki are also building plants in the western state - high profile investments that carry the added benefit of acting as marketing tools.
In the seven years through March 2011, Gujarat's economy grew an annual 10.08 percent at constant prices, against 6.45 percent in the eight years through March 2002 (Modi took office in October 2001), which was still ahead of the all-India average of 6.16 percent. A handful of states, including Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, clocked bigger gains over the same recent period.
By comparison, policy gridlock at the national level has contributed to a drop-off in corporate investment, putting India on track to record its slowest annual growth rate in a decade.
Accustomed to getting his way, Modi, 62, could struggle to negotiate the coalition politics that have become the norm at the national level and have hindered attempts at reform by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Congress-led administration.
"Policymaking has benefited from the fact that the BJP has had absolute majority in the state legislature - an advantage it certainly will not enjoy in the federal parliament," said Anjalika Bardalai, an analyst with the Eurasia Group in London.
Modi has also been able to leverage the business acumen of Gujaratis, a group that has long been known for trading and entrepreneurship and includes a prosperous global diaspora as well as billionaires such as Adani Group chief Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani, who controls Reliance Industries, India's most valuable company.

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Lawyer: 3 Delhi rape suspects to plead not guilty

NEW DELHI (AP) — Three of the suspects in the brutal rape and killing of a young woman on a New Delhi bus will plead not guilty, their lawyer said Thursday, hinting that police had tampered with evidence in the attack that has transfixed India.
"They are innocent," said Manohar Lal Sharma, who said he took the case in part to confront the police over "how manipulated evidence is placed for fixing the innocent people."
Five men have been charged with attacking the 23-year-old woman and her male companion on a bus as it was driven through streets of India's capital. The woman was raped and assaulted with a metal bar on Dec. 16 and eventually died of her injuries. Rape victims are not identified in India, even if they die, and rape trials are closed to the media.
Sharma spoke briefly to reporters on his way to a hearing for suspects in a New Delhi court complex. He says he represents bus driver Ram Singh, Singh's brother Mukesh, and another man, Akshay Thakur. Another lawyer, V.K. Anand, says he also represents the two Singh brothers. It's not yet clear if the other defendants have lawyers.
Thursday's hearing is expected to result in the case being sent to a special "fast-track" court. India's legal system is painfully slow, corrupt and inefficient, with many cases lasting years, even decades. But Indian officials have come under immense public pressure over the attack, accused of doing little to protect the country's women, and are eager to make sure the high-profile case moves quickly. Large protests have taken place across India since the attack, with women telling relentless stories of abuse — from catcalls to bus gropings to rapes — and of a police and judicial system that does little to stop it.
Authorities have charged the men with murder, rape and other crimes that could bring the death penalty. A sixth suspect, who is 17 years old, is expected to be tried in a juvenile court, where the maximum sentence would be three years in a reform facility.
Prosecutor Rajiv Mohan said last week that a DNA test confirmed that the blood of the victim matched blood stains found on the clothes of all the accused.

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Storm leaves Gaza man dead, Jerusalem snowed in

• Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2013. In Gaza, civil defense spokesman Mohammed al-Haj Yousef said …more 

JERUSALEM (AP) — A Gaza health official says a Palestinian man was electrocuted after being struck by a power cable snapped loose by ferocious winter winds, while a rare snowstorm paralyzed traffic inJerusalem, its suburbs and the nearby West Bank.

Ashraf al-Kidra says the 24-year-old died late Wednesday in the accident, which left four others injured. While heavy rains have subsided, wind gusts continue to wreak havoc with the territory's electrical supply, and power has been cut off this week for up to 14 hours a day.

On Thursday, several inches of snow piled up in Jerusalem, its environs and the West Bank for the first time in five years, shuttering schools and crippling transportation.

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Will game live up to hype in BCS championship?

MIAMI (AP) — Sometimes, the buildup to a game can overwhelm what actually happens on the field.
Certainly, No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Alabama would have to play nothing less than a classic to live up to all the hype for Monday night's BCS championship.
Before either team stepped on the field in balmy South Florida, this was shaping up as one of the most anticipated games in years, a throwback to the era when Keith Jackson & Co. called one game a week, when it was a big deal for teams from different parts of the country to meet in a bowl game, when everyone took sides based on where they happened to live.
North vs. South. Rockne vs. Bear. Rudy vs. Forrest Gump.
The Fighting Irish vs. the Crimson Tide.
College football's two most storied programs, glorified in movie and song, facing off for the biggest prize.
"It's definitely not any other game," said Alabama linebacker C.J. Mosley.
For the Crimson Tide (12-1), this is a chance to be remembered as a full-fledged dynasty. Alabama will be trying to claim its third national championship in four years and become the first school to win back-to-back BCS titles, a remarkable achievement given the ever-increasing parity of the college game and having to replace five players from last year's title team who were picked in the first two rounds of the NFL draft.
"To be honest, I think this team has kind of exceeded expectations," coach Nick Saban said Sunday. "If you look at all the players we lost last year, the leadership that we lost ... I'm really proud of what this team was able to accomplish."
That said, it's not a huge surprise to find Alabama playing for another title. That's not the case when it comes to Notre Dame.
Despite their impressive legacy, the Fighting Irish (12-0) weren't even ranked at the start of the season. But overtime wins against Stanford and Pittsburgh, combined with three other victories by a touchdown or less, gave Notre Dame a shot at its first national title since 1988.
After so many lost years, the golden dome has reclaimed its luster in coach Brian Kelly's third season.
"It starts with setting a clear goal for the program," Kelly said. "Really, what is it? Are we here to get to a bowl game, or are we here to win national championships? So the charge immediately was to play for championships and win a national championship."
Both Notre Dame and Alabama have won eight Associated Press national titles, more than any other school. They are the bluest of the blue bloods, the programs that have long set the bar for everyone else even while enduring some droughts along the way.
ESPN executives were hopeful of getting the highest ratings of the BCS era. Tickets were certainly at a premium, with a seat in one of the executive suites going for a staggering $60,000 on StubHub the day before the game, and even a less-than-prime spot in the corner of the upper deck requiring a payout of more than $900.
"This is, to me, the ultimate match-up in college football," said Brent Musberger, the lead announcer for ESPN.
Kelly molded Notre Dame using largely the same formula that has worked so well for Saban in Tuscaloosa: a bruising running game and a stout defense, led by Heisman Trophy finalist Manti Te'o.
"It's a little bit old fashioned in the sense that this is about the big fellows up front," Kelly said. "It's not about the crazy receiving numbers or passing yards or rushing yards. This is about the big fellas, and this game will unquestionably be decided up front."
While points figure to be at a premium given the quality of both defenses, Alabama appears to have a clear edge on offense. The Tide has the nation's highest-rated passer (AJ McCarron), two 1,000-yard rushers (Eddie Lacy and T.J. Yeldon), a dynamic freshman receiver (Amari Cooper), and three linemen who made the AP All-America team (first-teamers Barrett Jones and Chance Warmack, plus second-teamer D.J. Fluker).
"That's football at its finest," said Te'o, who heads a defense that has given up just two rushing touchdowns. "It's going to be a great challenge, and a challenge that we look forward to."
The Crimson Tide had gone 15 years without a national title when Saban arrived in 2007, the school's fifth coach in less than a decade (including one, Mike Price, who didn't even made it to his first game in Tuscaloosa). Finally, Alabama got it right.
In 2008, Saban landed one of the greatest recruiting classes in school history, a group that has already produced eight NFL draft picks and likely will send at least three more players to the pros (including Jones). The following year, the coach guided Alabama to a perfect season, beating Texas in the title game at Pasadena.
Last season, the Tide fortuitously got a shot at another BCS crown despite losing to LSU during the regular season and failing to even win its division in the Southeastern Conference. In a rematch against the Tigers, Alabama romped to a 21-0 victory at the Superdome.
The all-SEC matchup gave the league an unprecedented six straight national champions, hastening the end of the BCS. It will last one more season before giving way to a four-team playoff in 2014, an arrangement that was undoubtedly pushed along by one conference hoarding all the titles under the current system.
"Let's be honest, people are probably getting tired of us," Jones said. "We don't really mind. We enjoy being the top dog and enjoy kind of having that target on our back, and we love our conference. Obviously, we'd rather not be a part of any other conference."
This title game certainly has a different feel than last year's.
"That was really kind of a weird national championship because it was a team we already played," Jones remembered. "It was kind of another SEC game. It was in the South, and it just had a very SEC feel to it obviously. This year is much more like the 2009 game (against Texas) for me. We're playing an opponent that not only we have not played them, but no one we have played has played them (except for Michigan). So you don't really have an exact measuring stick."
In fact, these schools have played only six times, and not since 1987, but the first of their meetings is still remembered as one of the landmark games in college football history. Bear Bryant had one of his best teams at the 1973 Sugar Bowl, but Ara Parseghian and the Fighting Irish claimed the national title by knocking off top-ranked Alabama 24-23.
If you're a long-time Notre Dame fan, you still remember Parseghian's gutty call to throw the ball out of the end zone for a game-clinching first down. If you were rooting for the Tide, you haven't forgotten a missed extra point that turned out to be the losing margin.
Of course, these Alabama players aren't concerned about what happened nearly four decades ago.
For the most part, all they know is winning.
"There's a lot of tradition that goes into Alabama football," Mosley said, "and our plan is to keep that tradition alive."

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ASU tops No. 25 Kent St. 17-13 in GoDaddy.com Bowl

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Arkansas State's offense was held in check Sunday night after piling up big numbers this season. It was the defense that led the Red Wolves to a breakthrough victory.
Ryan Aplin threw for 213 yards and a touchdown, J.D. McKissic caught 11 passes for 113 yards and Arkansas State edged No. 25 Kent State 17-13 to win the GoDaddy.com Bowl.
Arkansas State's usually prolific offense struggled against Kent State, but the consistent Aplin-to-McKissic connection and a stingy defense was enough to help the Red Wolves (10-3) to their first bowl win since joining the Football Bowl Subdivision in 1992.
Kent State (11-3) was driving late in the game when quarterback Spencer Keith tried to scramble on fourth down and was stopped a few yards short of the marker with 52 seconds left. Linebacker Qushaun Lee made the shoestring tackle for the Red Wolves and finished with a team-leading 13 stops.
"That was a good one," Arkansas State interim coach John Thompson said. "Our guys stepped up with a minute to go. We really needed a play, and our guys made one. It wasn't anything except for ballplayers. It was anything special at all. We just made plays."
Darrell Hazell roamed the Kent State sideline one more time in the Golden Flashes' first bowl game since 1972. He is leaving the program to take over at Purdue.
Thompson, a veteran defensive coordinator, coached the Red Wolves after Gus Malzahn left to take the Auburn job last month. It was the second straight season Arkansas State had to play its bowl game without the coach that led it to a Sun Belt championship — Hugh Freeze left for Mississippi in 2011 before last year's GoDaddy.com Bowl, which the Red Wolves lost 38-20 to Northern Illinois.
The results were much better this time — and the defensive-minded Thompson was especially pleased with that side of the ball.
Arkansas State's offense was dominant during the last half of the regular season, averaging more than 41 points during a seven-game winning streak.
But the Red Wolves had to rely on their defense in this one while the offense slowly warmed up. Kent State took a 7-0 lead on Dri Archer's 16-yard touchdown run and the margin could have been worse, but Arkansas State linebacker Nathan Herrold picked off a tipped pass in the end zone to end a promising drive for the Golden Flashes.
David Oku rushed for a tying 10-yard touchdown with 5:40 remaining in the second quarter, and then Aplin hit McKissic for a 31-yard touchdown minutes later to make it 14-7.
"Our offense did exactly what it was supposed to do," Thompson said. "They did a great job. Ryan Aplin took some shots — I guess I can say it now — some unnecessary shots that weren't good. But our defense — we've got men over there. Grown men."
Kent State responded with a 42-yard field goal by Freddy Cortez just before halftime. The teams traded field goals in the third quarter, but neither team could score in the fourth.
The Golden Flashes put together one last drive in the final minutes, with Keith completing a clutch 15-yard pass over the middle on fourth down with less than two minutes remaining. He was headed for another fourth-down conversion just four plays later, but was tripped up on a scramble deep in Arkansas State territory. The Red Wolves then began to celebrate on their sideline.
"I saw their defense drop back really fast, and I thought I had enough room to get the first down," Keith said. "But they were able to get me on the ankle."
It was a disappointing end to an otherwise breakthrough season for Kent State, which set a school record with 11 victories, including a 10-game winning streak that lasted nearly three months. But they dropped their last two games, including a 44-37 double-overtime loss to Northern Illinois on Nov. 30 in the Mid-American Conference championship.
One reason Kent State was able to win 11 games was a dynamic rushing attack that averaged more than 250 yards per game. But the duo of Archer and Trayion Durham didn't have a particularly good game against the Red Wolves.
Archer, who missed much of the second half with an apparent injury, led the Golden Flashes with 77 yards rushing while Durham added 68.
Aplin completed 21 of 30 passes in his final college game. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior owns nearly every school passing record and is the Sun Belt two-time player of the year.
This wasn't one of his most spectacular games, but he was consistent, made very few mistakes and had no turnovers.
That was no small feat against Kent State, which led the nation with 38 takeaways coming into the game. The Golden Flashes couldn't get one against the Red Wolves.
"That was a huge part of our game plan," Aplin said. "We knew we couldn't afford to give them momentum. Our guys did a great job taking care of the ball and giving our defense a chance to help us win."

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Nuggets survive Kobe fireworks to ice Lakers

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Denver Nuggets dropped the stumbling Los Angeles Lakers further into the doldrums on Sunday with a 112-105 win despite some fourth-quarter fireworks from Kobe Bryant.
Ty Lawson scored 21 points and 10 assists and Danilo Gallinari hit five of his 20 in the final seconds to kill the Lakers' rally and send them to a third successive defeat.
The Lakers (15-18) left with more than their pride bruised, Pau Gasol exiting the contest in the fourth quarter after having his nose bloodied by an elbow from JaVale McGee.
Center Dwight Howard also aggravated a right shoulder injury and will undergo scans on Monday.
"It's a great win for us but I'm not going to inflate it," Nuggets coach George Karl told reporters.
"I told the team before the game I don't remember the last time we won in here in the regular season."
Bryant did his best to rescue Los Angeles again by scoring 18 of his 29 points in the final quarter but the Lakers fell just short in front of a frustrated home crowd.
Los Angeles trailed by 10 midway through the fourth, although they fought back as Bryant twice made three-pointers to pull them within three in the final minute.
Gallinari drained a three of his own to halt the comeback with 13 seconds remaining and Denver (20-16) made four straight free throws to ice the game for their third win in four.
The Nuggets scored 60 points in the paint to punish Los Angeles inside. Howard put in a solid shift, recording 14 points and 26 rebounds in the loss but his injury will cause concern.
The Lakers have now lost four of five and are tumbling down the standings under new coach Mike D'Antoni and his star-studded roster.
Tempers flared as Steve Nash and Gasol were both assessed rare technical fouls.
"I think because of our record probably the pressure is building," admitted D'Antoni, whose team is currently out of the playoff picture. "But so be it. We have to overcome it."

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Venezuela's Chavez fighting severe lung infection

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is being treated for "respiratory deficiency" after complications from a severe lung infection, his government said, pointing to a deepening crisis for the ailing 58-year-old president.
Chavez hasn't spoken publicly or been seen since his Dec. 11 operation in Cuba, and the latest report from his government Thursday night increased speculation that he is unlikely to be able to be sworn in for another term as scheduled in less than a week.
"Chavez has faced complications as a result of a severe respiratory infection. This infection has led to respiratory deficiency that requires Commander Chavez to remain in strict compliance with his medical treatment," Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said Thursday night, reading the statement on television.
The government's characterization raised the possibility that Chavez might be breathing with the assistance of a machine. But the government did not address that question and didn't give details of the president's treatment.
"It appears he has a very severe pneumonia that he suffered after a respiratory failure. It is not very specific," said Dr. Alejandro Rios-Ramirez, a pulmonary specialist in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, who is not involved in Chavez's treatment. "It does imply the gravity of his pulmonary infection that led to a respiratory failure. It doesn't mean yet that he is breathing with a machine."
Dr. Michael Pishvaian, an oncologist at Georgetown University's Lombardi Cancer Center in Washington, said such respiratory infections can run the gamut from "a mild infection requiring antibiotics and supplemental oxygen to life threatening respiratory complications."
"It could be a very ominous sign," Pishvaian said.
The government expressed confidence in Chavez's medical team and condemned what it called a "campaign of psychological warfare" in the international media regarding the president's condition. Officials have urged Venezuelans not to heed rumors about Chavez's condition.
The statement didn't point to any particular rumors but said "this campaign aims ultimately to destabilize the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ... and end the Bolivarian Revolution led by Chavez."
Venezuela's opposition has demanded that the government provide more specific information about Chavez's condition.
Chavez has undergone four cancer-related surgeries since June 2011 for an undisclosed type of pelvic cancer. He also has undergone chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
He was re-elected in October to another six-year term, and two months later announced that the cancer had come back. Chavez said before the operation that if his illness prevented him from remaining president, Vice President Nicolas Maduro should be his party's candidate to replace him in a new election.
This week, the president's elder brother Adan and National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello joined a parade of visitors who saw Chavez in Havana, and then returned to Caracas on Thursday along with Maduro.
"In the past hours, we've been accompanying President Hugo Chavez and taking him the courage and strength of the Venezuelan people," Maduro said on television. Appearing next to Cabello visiting a government-run coffee plant in Caracas, he said they had been with Chavez together with the president's brother, his son-in-law Jorge Arreaza, Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez and Attorney General Cilia Flores.
Chavez's health crisis has raised contentious questions ahead of the swearing-in set for Jan. 10, including whether the inauguration could legally be postponed and what will happen if Chavez can't begin his new term. The plans of Chavez's allies remain a mystery.
The Venezuelan Constitution says the presidential oath should be taken Jan. 10 before the National Assembly, and officials have raised the possibility that Chavez might not be well enough to do that, without saying what will happen if he can't.
The constitution says that if a president or president-elect dies or is declared unable to continue in office, presidential powers should be held temporarily by the president of the National Assembly, who is now Cabello. It says a new presidential vote should be held within 30 days.
Opposition leaders have argued that Chavez, who was re-elected to a six-year term in October, seems no longer fit to continue as president and have demanded that a new election be held within 30 days if he isn't in Caracas on inauguration day.
But some of Chavez's close confidants dismiss the view that the inauguration date is a hard deadline, saying Chavez could be given more time to recover from his surgery if necessary.
Aristobulo Isturiz, a state governor and leader of Chavez's United Socialist Party of Venezuela, said Thursday that if Chavez's swearing-in isn't held Jan. 10, it will be up to the Supreme Court to determine the place and date of the ceremony.
"The president has a right to recover," Isturiz said in remarks published by the state-run Venezuelan News Agency.
Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma, an opposition politician, proposed on Thursday that a commission travel to Cuba to determine the state of Chavez's health. He said the delegation should be made up of doctors, lawmakers and other officials such as state governors, including opposition leader Henrique Capriles.
"I'm not asking for permission to go to Cuba. I think it's our right to go there and see what's going on," Ledezma said in comments reported by the television channel Globovision. "Enough mysteries. Venezuela isn't a colony of Cuba."
Some of the brewing disagreements could begin to be aired Saturday, when the National Assembly, which is controlled by a pro-Chavez majority, convenes to select legislative leaders. That session will be held just five days before the scheduled inauguration day.

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Egypt prosecutors investigate popular TV comedian

Egyptian prosecutors launched an investigation on Tuesday against a popular television satirist for allegedly insulting the president in the latest case raised by Islamist lawyers against outspoken media personalities.
Lawyer Ramadan Abdel-Hamid al-Oqsori charged that TV host Bassem Youssef insulted President Mohammed Morsi by putting the Islamist leader's image on a pillow and parodying his speeches.
The case against Youssef comes as opposition media and independent journalists are growing increasingly worried about press freedoms under a new constitution widely supported by Morsi and his Islamist allies.
Other cases have been brought against media personalities who have criticized the president. Some of the cases have ended with charges being dropped. Morsi's office maintains that the president has nothing to do with legal procedures against media critics.
On Tuesday, the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Youm, one of Egypt's most widely circulated newspapers, said Morsi's office filed a complaint accusing it of "circulating false news likely to disturb public peace and public security and affect the administration."
The paper had published a report earlier this week attributed to sources saying that Morsi was due to visit the hospital where ousted President Hosni Mubarak is receiving treatment after being injured in his prison cell. Mubarak is serving a life sentence for failing to stop the killing of nearly 900 protesters during the uprising against him.
A visit by Morsi would have enflamed public anger. The paper later updated the story to say that Morsi's wife had only visited a relative in that hospital.
The paper said a reporter and an editor were summoned for interrogation.
A local committee of journalists and editors has called for stronger guarantees of press freedoms and a rejection of the current constitution, fearing it allows for jailing journalists under broadly-worded articles regarding media offenses.
Authorities ordered the closure of TV station "Al-Fareen" last summer after bringing its owner, Tawfiq Okasha, to trial for scathing attacks against Morsi and his Brotherhood group. Okasha had emerged as one of the most popular TV personalities of post-Mubarak Egypt by railing against the uprising that toppled Mubarak's 29-year rule in February 2011.
Another prominent case was directed at the editor of a prominent opposition newspaper, al-Dustour, who has since stepped down. He went on trial briefly for "spreading lies" and fabricating news.
Youssef, a doctor, catapulted to fame when his video blogs mocking politics received hundreds of thousands of hits shortly after the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime leader Mubarak.
Youssef's program is modeled after Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show," where he has appeared as a guest.
Unlike other local TV presenters, Youssef uses satire to mock fiery comments made by ultraconservative clerics and politicians, garnering him a legion of fans among the country's revolutionaries and liberals.
Among his most popular clips are the ones where he pokes fun at the president's speeches and decisions.
While holding a red, furry pillow with Morsi's picture on it, Youssef satirizes Morsi's style of speech.
"He tells us things we never knew," he says, before wordy clips of Morsi going into detail about the day of the week and other basic facts.
"It's October 6! Tell us when it's Christmas!" Youssef shouts to the camera as the audience erupts in laughter and applause.
Youssef, 38, is one of Egypt's most popular TV presenters with 1.4 million fans on Facebook and nearly 850,000 followers on Twitter, just shy of the president's number of followers.
Also Tuesday, police said they arrested a suspect in a shooting that seriously wounded a protester in Cairo's central Tahrir Square, where an open-ended sit-in protesting the Morsi regime is taking place.
According to witnesses, before dawn on Monday, gunmen shot and wounded 19-year-old Muhanad Samir, who has said he was jailed and tortured under Egypt's former ruling military council after he witnessed the killing of another activist. Lawyers say the attacked appeared to target Samir, who is battling for his life with pellets embedded in his head.
Security officials dismiss allegations Samir was the victim of a political assassination. On Tuesday, they said they arrested the owner of a cafe in downtown Cairo who told police that he fired on the square after people manning makeshift checkpoints there searched his car and shot at him. The officials spoke anonymously in line with regulations.

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Israeli-Palestinian clashes erupt in West Bank

TAMOUN, West Bank (AP) — An arrest raid by undercover Israeli soldiers disguised as vegetable vendors ignited rare clashes in the northern West Bank on Tuesday, residents said, leaving at 10 Palestinians wounded.
Israeli army raids into Palestinian areas to seize activists and militants are fairly common. The raids are normally coordinated with Palestinian security forces, and suspects are usually apprehended without violence.
The clashes began early Tuesday after Israeli forces disguised as merchants in a vegetable truck arrested one man. Regular army forces then entered the town, prompting youths to hurl rocks to try to prevent more arrests.
Israeli forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition as youths set tires and bins on fire to block the passage of military vehicles. In several hours of clashes, dozens of masked youths hid behind makeshift barriers, hurling rocks and firebombs at soldiers.
Faris Bisharat, a resident of Tamoun, said 10 men were wounded, some by live fire. Bisharat said the wanted men belong to Islamic Jihad, a violent group sworn to Israel's destruction. It wasn't clear how many men Israeli forces sought to arrest. There were no immediate details on how seriously the 10 were hurt.
The Israeli military said it arrested a "terrorist affiliated with the Islamic Jihad terror group." It said two soldiers were injured during the raid.
The fighting, which broke out in several parts of the town of some 8,000 people, were a rare, angry response. It was also unusual for Israeli forces to use live fire toward Palestinian demonstrators. Israel says it uses live fire only in extremely dangerous situations.

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Syrian rebels attack air base in the north

BEIRUT (AP) — Rebels attacked a sprawling air base in northern Syria on Wednesday as the opposition expanded its offensive on military airports in an attempt to sideline a major weapon in the hands of President Bashar Assad's forces.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the rebel assault on the Taftanaz base was preceded by heavy shelling of the area, and the fighters appeared to be trying to storm the facility. Observatory director Rami Abdul-Rahman described the attack as one "of the most intense" on the airfield.
In the past few weeks, Syrian rebels have stepped up their attacks on airports around the neighboring province of Aleppo, trying to chip away at the government's air power, which poses the biggest obstacle to the opposition fighters' advances. As its control of large swaths of territory has slipped over the past year, the government has increasingly relied on its warplanes and helicopters to strike rebel-held areas.
Several past rebel attempts to capture the Taftanaz base have failed.
The Observatory said Syrian army helicopters were helping defend the airfield against the rebel assault. It added that four rebels were killed in the clashes around the base and that one helicopter was hit by rebel fire.
The Observatory said the rebels attacking Taftanaz base included members of Jabhat al-Nusra, which has been branded a terrorist organization by the U.S. and is affiliated with al-Qaida. The group's fighters have been among the most effective on the rebel side in their battle to oust Assad.
On Tuesday, clashes between government troops and rebels forced the international airport in Aleppo to stop all flights in and out of Syria's largest city.
Rebels have been fighting for control of Aleppo since launching an offensive on the city over the summer. The fight over the commercial hub has turned into a bloody stalemate, although rebels have captured large swathes of territory in the surrounding Aleppo province west and north of the city up to the Turkish border.
The rebels have been attacking three other airports in the Aleppo area, including the Mannagh military helicopter base near the Turkish border. They have posted dozens of videos online that appear to show fighters shooting mortars, homemade rockets and sniper rifles at targets inside the bases.
The Local Coordination Committees, another activist group, said rebels Wednesday bombarded the Mannagh air base, which has been subjected to almost daily attacks since late last month.
The Observatory and the LCC said Syrian army warplanes bombed several Damascus suburbs including Maadamiyeh, where they said there were casualties.
The Observatory also reported that eight shells struck the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk in the capital forcing some of the residents to flee the area that is mostly in the hands of rebels.
Anti-regime activists say more than 45,000 people have been killed since the uprising against Assad began in March 2011. Since then, it has evolved into a full-scale civil war with scores of armed groups across the country fighting regime forces.

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Dozens killed, wounded in airstrike near Damascus

BEIRUT (AP) — A Syrian warplane blasted a gas station near Damascus Wednesday, killing and wounding dozens of people and igniting a huge fire in what could be one of the bloodiest attacks in weeks during the 22-month civil war.
Activists said a single Russian-built MiG fighter fired a missile that hit the gas station, setting off an inferno in the eastern suburb of Mleiha. Black smoke billowed from the site. An amateur video posted online showed charred bodies and gruesome carnage at the scene.
Mohammed Saeed, an activist who visited the site, said the missile struck as drivers waited in line with their cars at the station. Syria has been facing a fuel crisis, and people often wait for hours to get gasoline.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human said "tens of people were killed or wounded." At least 10 bodies were seen in an amateur video.
"Many of the people who were there were killed," Saeed said via Skype. "Body parts could be seen on the ground."
He said the missile fired by the MiG warplane caused a crater a meter (three feet) deep.
An amateur video showed several vehicles on fire and a cloud of smoke rising into the air. The videos appeared genuine and corresponded to other AP reporting on the events depicted.
It was unclear why the Syrian military targeted the gas station. There have been clashes and shelling in nearby areas in the past days.
Saeed said there were two other air raids in the nearby suburbs of Maadamiyeh and Deir al-Asafir.
"Since yesterday the raids have been very intense," Saeed said.
In the north, rebels attacked a sprawling air base Wednesday as the opposition expanded its offensive on military airports in an attempt to sideline a major weapon in the hands of President Bashar Assad's forces.
The Observatory said the rebel assault on the Taftanaz base was preceded by heavy shelling of the area, and the fighters appeared to be trying to storm the facility. Observatory director Rami Abdul-Rahman described the attack as one "of the most intense" on the airfield.
In the past few weeks, Syrian rebels have stepped up their attacks on airports around the neighboring province of Aleppo, trying to chip away at the government's air power, which poses the biggest obstacle to the opposition fighters' advances. As its control of large swaths of territory has slipped over the past year, the government has increasingly relied on its warplanes and helicopters to strike rebel-held areas.
Several past rebel attempts to capture the Taftanaz base have failed.
The Observatory said Syrian army helicopters were helping defend the airfield against the rebel assault. It said four rebels were killed in the clashes around the base, and one helicopter was hit by rebel fire.
The Observatory said the rebels attacking Taftanaz base included members of Jabhat al-Nusra, affiliated with al-Qaida and branded a terrorist organization by the U.S. The group's fighters have been among the most effective on the rebel side in their battle to oust Assad.
On Tuesday, clashes between government troops and rebels forced the international airport in Aleppo to stop all flights in and out of Syria's largest city.
Rebels have been fighting for control of Aleppo since launching an offensive on the city over the summer. The fight over the commercial hub has turned into a bloody stalemate. Rebels have captured large swathes of territory in the surrounding Aleppo province west and north of the city up to the Turkish border.
The rebels have been attacking three other airports in the Aleppo area, including the Mannagh military helicopter base near the Turkish border. They have posted dozens of videos online that appear to show fighters shooting mortars, homemade rockets and sniper rifles at targets inside the bases.
The LCC said rebels Wednesday bombarded the Mannagh air base, which has been subjected to almost daily attacks since late last month.
The Observatory also reported that eight shells struck the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk in the capital forcing some of the residents to flee the area that is mostly in the hands of rebels.
Anti-regime activists say more than 45,000 people have been killed since the uprising against Assad began in March 2011. Since then, it has evolved into a full-scale civil war with scores of armed groups across the country fighting regime forces.

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Egyptian officials fly to UAE to discuss arrests

CAIRO (AP) — Two senior Egyptian officials flew to the United Arab Emirates Wednesday to discuss the arrest of 11 Egyptians accused of forming a Muslim Brotherhood cell in the emirate, Cairo airport officials said.
A statement from Egypt's president said one of the envoys, Essam el-Haddad, presidential adviser for foreign affairs and international cooperation, was carrying a letter from President Mohammed Morsi to the UAE President Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Morsi is from the Muslim Brotherhood, which has emerged as Egypt's most powerful political force in the aftermath of the uprising that ousted longtime President Hosni Mubarak nearly two years ago.
The statement did not disclose the contents of the letter. It said el-Haddad will also meet officials in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
All political parties or groups are banned in the tightly controlled UAE.
The UAE's Al-Khaleej newspaper reported Tuesday that the 11 Egyptians were arrested last month after allegedly collecting security information about the UAE, holding secret meetings, recruiting members and sending large amounts of money to Brotherhood leaders in Cairo.
Envoys are expected to discuss relations between the two countries, which have soured after Egyptian presidential candidate and former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq flew to the UAE soon after he narrowly lost to Morsi in Egypt's presidential elections last year.
Litigation against Shafiq followed his departure, with a number of investigations and court cases accusing him of corruption during his long political career under Mubarak.
News media in the two countries reported accusations about alleged conspiracies against each other, including rumors of a plan to kidnap Morsi and take him to the UAE. The rumors peaked when thousands of Egyptians demonstrated in front of Morsi's palace last month, protesting a draft constitution and a presidential decree giving Morsi wider powers.
In September, Dubai's police chief, Lt. Gen. Dahi Khalfan Tamim, warned of an "international plot" to overthrow the Gulf governments by Islamists inspired by the rise to power of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
The UAE has not faced street protests during Arab Spring upheavals, but authorities have stepped up arrests and pressure on groups including an Islamist organization, Al Islah, accused of undermining the country's ruling system.

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Prosecutor killed in Guatemala along with 6 others

 Guatemala's attorney general dispatched a special team Monday to investigate the slaying of a federal prosecutor and six other people in an attack near the Mexican border.
Attorney General Claudia Paz y Paz said she was sending prosecutors and investigators to the area of northern Guatemala where Irma Yolanda Olivares, who worked in one of the prosecutor's regional officers, was slain along with an official working for a government social service agency and five others on Sunday night.
President Otto Perez Molina blamed the attack on drug traffickers, who have taken over swathes of territory along the border with Mexico.
The Interior Ministry said that a group of armed, masked men had intercepted the sport-utility vehicle carrying Olivares and three other passengers, who were returning from the inauguration of a hotel in the city of La Mesilla. The attackers opened fire, then burned the victims' bodies, officials said. Three other people were found fatally shot and burned in another vehicle nearby, official said.
Officials were not immediately able to determine the identities of the three or whether they were killed by the same attackers, said Ricardo Guzman, sub-secretary general in the prosecutor's office.
"The death of a member of the attorney general's team is a serious attack against the institution and against the work done by each prosecutor's office to fight impunity in this country," Paz said.

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Pardon for pope's butler who stole papers expected

The Vatican has summoned journalists for a briefing on what Italian news reports say is an expected pardon for Pope Benedict XVI'S former butler, who stole the pontiff's personal papers and leaked them in a bid to expose the "evil and corruption" in the Catholic Church.
Paolo Gabriele was arrested May 23 after Vatican police found heaps of papal documents in his Vatican City apartment. He was convicted of aggravated theft by a Vatican tribunal on Oct. 6 and has been serving his 18-month sentence in the Vatican police barracks.
The Vatican has made no secret that the pope would pardon Gabriele. The only question was when. A pre-Christmas pardon was widely expected.
Veteran Vatican journalists reported the announcement would come Saturday, and the Vatican press office scheduled a last-minute briefing.

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Pope stresses family values as gay marriage gains

The pope pressed his opposition to gay marriage Friday, denouncing what he described as people eschewing their God-given gender identities to suit their sexual choices — and destroying the very "essence of the human creature" in the process.
Benedict XVI made the comments in his annual Christmas address to the Vatican bureaucracy, one of his most important speeches of the year. He dedicated it this year to promoting traditional family values in the face of gains by same-sex marriage proponents in the U.S. and Europe and efforts to legalize gay marriage in places like France and Britain.
In his remarks, Benedict quoted the chief rabbi of France, Gilles Bernheim, in saying the campaign for granting gays the right to marry and adopt children was an "attack" on the traditional family made up of a father, mother and children.
"People dispute the idea that they have a nature, given to them by their bodily identity, that serves as a defining element of the human being," he said. "They deny their nature and decide that it is not something previously given to them, but that they make it for themselves."
"The manipulation of nature, which we deplore today where our environment is concerned, now becomes man's fundamental choice where he himself is concerned," he said.
It was the second time in a week that Benedict has taken on the question of gay marriage, which is currently dividing France, and which scored big electoral wins in the United States last month. In his recently released annual peace message, Benedict said gay marriage, like abortion and euthanasia, was a threat to world peace. The Vatican went on a similar anti-gay marriage media blitz last month after three U.S. states approved gay marriage by popular vote.
After the peace message was released last week, gay activists staged a small protest in St. Peter's Square. On Friday, gay activists sharply criticized the pope's take on gender theory and insisted that where gay marriage has been legalized, families are no worse off.
Italy's main gay rights group Arcigay called the pope's comments "absurd, dangerous and totally out of synch with reality." And a coalition of four U.S. Catholic organizations representing gay, lesbian and transgender people said the pope had an "outmoded" view of what it means to be man and woman.
"Increasingly Catholics in the United States and around the world see what we see. Catholics, following their own well-formed consciences, are voting to support equal rights for LGBT people because in their churches and communities they see a far healthier, godly and realistic vision of the human family than the one offered by the pope," according to a statement from the groups Call To Action, DignityUSA, Fortunate Families, and New Ways Ministry.
Church teaching holds that homosexual acts are "intrinsically disordered," though it stresses that gays should be treated with compassion and dignity. As pope and as head of the Vatican's orthodoxy watchdog before that, Benedict has been a strong enforcer of that teaching: One of the first major documents released during his pontificate said men with "deep-seated" homosexual tendencies shouldn't be ordained priests.
For the Vatican, though, the gay marriage issue goes beyond questions of homosexuality, threatening what the church considers to be the bedrock of society: a family based on a man, woman and their children.
In his speech, the pope cited Bernheim as lamenting how a new philosophy of sexuality has taken hold, whereby sex and gender are "no longer a given element of nature that man has to accept and personally make sense of: it is a social role that we choose for ourselves, while in the past it was chosen for us by society."
He said God had created man and woman as a specific "duality" — "an essential aspect of what being human is all about."
Now, though, "Man and woman as created realities, as the nature of the human being, no longer exist. Man calls his own nature into question. From now on he is merely spirit and will."
The Vatican's opposition to gay marriage has been falling largely on deaf ears. In addition to the U.S. election gains, the Constitutional Court in largely Roman Catholic Spain upheld the law legalizing gay marriage last month. Earlier this month, the British government announced it will introduce a bill next year legalizing gay marriage, though it would ban the Church of England from conducting same-sex ceremonies.
In France, President Francois Hollande has said he would enact his "marriage for everyone" plan within a year of taking office last May. The text will go to parliament next month. But the country has been divided by vocal opposition from religious leaders, prime among them Bernheim, as well as some politicians and parts of rural France.
The Socialist government's plan also envisions legalizing same-sex adoptions. Benedict quoted Bernheim as denouncing the plan, saying that it would mean a child would essentially be considered an object people have a right to obtain.
"When freedom to be creative becomes the freedom to create oneself, then necessarily the Maker himself is denied and ultimately man too is stripped of his dignity as a creature of God," Benedict said.

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Margaret Thatcher in UK hospital after operation

 Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is recuperating at a hospital after an operation to remove a bladder growth, a friend said Friday.
The 87-year-old Thatcher went to see her doctor after experiencing some discomfort and subsequently had the growth removed, according to longtime adviser Tim Bell.
The operation was "completely satisfactory," Bell said. He said he couldn't go into detail as to the nature of the growth and declined to name the hospital, saying he did not want it to be inundated with calls.
Thatcher, Britain's first female prime minister, has been in fragile health since she suffered a series of small strokes more than a decade ago. Although she has occasionally appeared at private functions, she has not made public statements for some time.
Thatcher was not well enough to join Britain's queen for a lunch with former and serving prime ministers earlier this year, and two years ago she missed an 85th birthday party thrown for her by Prime Minister David Cameron at his official residence at No. 10 Downing Street. But in October she was well enough to mark her birthday with a lunch out in London with her son Mark and his wife.
Thatcher's declining health was a focus of Oscar-winning biopic "The Iron Lady," which premiered last year.
Thatcher served as prime minister from May 1979 until her resignation in November 1990. She was the first leader to win three consecutive elections, dominating British politics throughout the 1980s.
She was a firm supporter of her American ideological peer, President Ronald Reagan, but is a divisive figure in Britain, where the fruits of her legacy are still debated.

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Margaret Thatcher in hospital after operation

 Former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, the country's first woman elective leader, is in hospital recovering from surgery to remove a growth on her bladder, a source close to the family said on Friday.
After experiencing pain in her bladder earlier in the week, he 87-year-old went to hospital where she underwent a minimally invasive operation, Tim Bell, a public relations executive who once served as image maker to Thatcher, said.
"The operation was completely satisfactory. She's now recovering in hospital and as soon as she's recovered she'll go home," Bell said.
Known as the "Iron Lady," Thatcher, who stepped down in 1990, embraced free market policies, challenged trade unions and privatised many state-owned companies during her 11 years in power, polarising British voters.
Britain's only woman prime minister, who led her country in a war with Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982 and was close to the late U.S. President Ronald Reagan, was forced to step down by her own party.
Thatcher suffered a series of mild strokes in late 2001 and 2002, after which she cut back on public appearances and later cancelled her speaking schedule.
She was hospitalised in 2010 for tests relating to a flu illness.

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Budget deficit worsens, credit rating at risk

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's budget deficit worsened in November, data showed on Friday, increasing the risk it will lose its top-notch credit rating and overshoot this year's borrowing forecast.
The data - which showed public sector net borrowing, excluding financial sector interventions, hit 17.5 billion pounds last month - is gloomy news for Britain's coalition government.
Deficit reduction and preserving Britain's credit rating have been top goals for the coalition of Conservatives and Lib Dems, which came to power in June 2010, just after the country's budget deficit peaked at 11.2 percent of GDP.
Last year, the budget deficit totalled 8 percent of GDP, and the government's own budget watchdog forecasts it will take until 2017 before it falls below 3 percent and the government manages to run a surplus on cyclically-adjusted non-investment spending.
Chancellor George Osborne had originally planned to meet this goal by the next election in 2015, but far weaker than expected growth since 2010 now makes that look impossible.
While other official data released on Friday showed Britain's economy may avoid a forecast contraction in the last three months of 2012, analysts say the borrowing numbers could see the country's credit rating revised early next year.
"The disappointing November public finance data fuel mounting expectations that at least one of the credit rating agencies will strip the UK of its AAA rating in 2013," said Howard Archer, chief UK economist at IHS Global Insight.
Standard & Poor's last week joined Fitch and Moody's and put a negative outlook on its triple-A rating for Britain. The latter two agencies - which have had a negative outlook since early this year - will review their ratings in early 2013.
Last month's public sector net borrowing figure of 17.5 billion pounds exceeded economists' expectations. They had forecast it would come in just below the 16.3 billion pounds reached in November 2011.
Borrowing since the start of the tax year in April is now nearly 10 percent higher than at the same point in 2011.
This calls into question forecasts issued earlier this month by the government's budget watchdog which estimated borrowing will fall 11 percent to total 108.5 billion pounds in the 2012-13 tax year.
Some of the fall in borrowing forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) was due to money expected from the auction of next-generation mobile phone frequencies and a deal with the Bank of England to return interest paid on its bond holdings - cash that will not boot the public finances until early 2013.
But even disregarding this, some economists think Osborne, the finance minister, may struggle to hit the OBR's targets.
Archer expects an overshoot of some 14 billion pounds, while economists at Barclays see an overshoot of 6.5 billion pounds, assuming the radio spectrum auction brings in the 3.5 billion pounds pencilled in by the OBR.
WEAKER GROWTH
Britain's economy shrank for nine months between late 2011 and mid-2012, but revised figures from the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday that growth rebounded by 0.9 percent in the third quarter of 2012, a little less than the 1.0 percent first estimated.
There was slightly brighter news from Britain's dominant services sector, which grew 0.1 percent in October after a 0.6 percent decline in September.
This was better than many economists had expected, and raises the prospect that the economy will avoid a return to contraction that the OBR and the Bank of England have predicted.
"It's not a great number but it is positive," said Ross Walker, an economist at Royal Bank of Scotland. "On the basis of all the published data it looks like the fourth quarter will be broadly flat, rather than negative."
Another bright spot was third-quarter current account data, which showed Britain's deficit with the rest of the world narrowed more than expected to 12.8 billion pounds, equivalent to 3.3 percent of GDP, from 17.4 billion in the second quarter.
However, economic growth will need to translate into stronger tax revenues and lower spending on social benefits if the government is to meet its budget goals.
November's budget overshoot was driven by a 6.3 percent year-on-year rise in central government spending, while tax revenues grew just 0.6 percent.
The closure of a North Sea oil field earlier this year has done major damage to corporation tax revenues, but Barclays economist Blerina Uruci said she was more concerned about signs that spending by government departments was rising more than expected.
"It could suggest difficulties with delivering efficiency savings as austerity fatigue sets in," she said.
The OBR said it expected to see underspending by government departments towards the end of the fiscal year, as well as stronger future growth in income tax and sales tax revenues.
Business minister Vince Cable sought to play down worries about the state of public finances, saying more austerity than planned could tip the economy back into recession.
"The fact that there has been a temporary increase in borrowing I don't think is a matter for criticism," he told BBC radio. "The government ... have been flexible, just accepting that when the economy slows down you are going to get bigger deficits (and) the government has to borrow to cover them."
However, the Labour Party said Friday's data showed there had already been too much austerity.
"By squeezing families and businesses too hard, choking off the recovery and so pushing borrowing up, not down, (Prime Minister) David Cameron and George Osborne's economic plan has completely backfired," said Labour legislator Rachel Reeves.

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UK prosecutors consider charges over royal hoax call

LONDON (Reuters) - British detectives investigating the death of a nurse found hanged after she took a prank phone call at a hospital treating Prince William's pregnant wife Kate have passed an evidence file to prosecutors, police said on Saturday.
Public prosecutors must decide whether the case is strong enough to bring charges over a stunt that was condemned around the world and fuelled concerns about media ethics.
Indian-born Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found hanging in her hospital lodgings in London, days after she answered the hoax call from an Australian radio station, an inquest heard.
She put the call through to a colleague who disclosed details of the Duchess of Cambridge's condition during treatment for an extreme form of morning sickness in the early stages of pregnancy.
"Officers submitted a file to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for them to consider whether any potential offences may have been committed by making the hoax call," London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
A CPS spokesman confirmed it had received the file, but declined to comment on the timing or nature of possible charges.
"That is what we will be considering," he said.
Prime Minister David Cameron has described the case as a "complete tragedy" and has said many lessons will have to be learned from the nurse's death.
Australia's media regulator has launched an investigation into the phone call. Southern Cross Austereo, parent company of radio station 2Day FM, has apologised for the stunt.
Britain's own media is already under pressure to agree a new system of self-regulation and avoid state intervention following a damning inquiry into reporting practices.
The presenters who made the call, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, have apologised for their actions.

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Prince William to spend Christmas with the in-laws

LONDON (AP) — Prince William will spend Christmas with his pregnant wife Kate and his in-laws in the southern England village of Bucklebury, royal officials said Saturday.
That means a family Christmas for the Duchess of Cambridge, who was recently hospitalized after suffering from severe morning sickness.
A statement from St. James' Palace, William's official residence, didn't go into much detail, saying only that the prince and Kate would spend their time in Bucklebury "privately." But a recent article penned by Kate's sister, Pippa Middleton, gave some insight into what a Bucklebury holiday might look like for the royal pair.
"The Middletons' Christmas should be blissfully calm. We're good at keeping each other's spirits up," Pippa wrote in the most recent edition of Britain's Spectator magazine. She added that her father, Michael, liked to surprise the family with bizarre costumes.
"He buys a new costume each year and typically gets a bit carried away — a couple of Christmases ago, he appeared in an inflatable sumo outfit," she wrote.
British royals traditionally spend the holidays at Sandringham, a vast estate in eastern England, and a spokesman for William said that royal couple would pay a visit at some point over the festive season. He noted that William's absence from Sandringham had been approved by his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and her husband, Prince Philip.
He spoke on condition of anonymity because palace rules forbid his identification in the press.

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