WASHINGTON, May 21: The federal government appears to have the authority to prosecute journalists or newspapers for publishing classified information, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said on Sunday.

The Justice Department is investigating who disclosed the government’s secret domestic surveillance programme to The New York Times, which broke the story in December.

“There are some statutes on the book which, if you read the language carefully, would seem to indicate that that is a possibility,” Mr Gonzales told ABC’s “This Week,” when asked if the government could prosecute journalists for publishing classified information.

The domestic spying programme allows the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on the international phone calls and e-mails of US citizens without first obtaining a warrant, while pursuing Al Qaeda suspects.

Critics say the programme raises constitutional concerns and violates the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a 1978 law requiring court warrants for all intelligence-related eavesdropping inside the United States.

Mr Gonzales did not rule out prosecuting the Times or its reporters for publishing the leak.

“We are engaged now in an investigation about what would be the appropriate course of action in that particular case, so I’m not going to talk about it specifically,” Mr Gonzales said.

“But as we do in every case, it’s a case-by-case evaluation about what the evidence shows us, our interpretation of the law. We have an obligation to enforce the law and to prosecute those who engage in criminal activity,” he said.

Mr Gonzales also was asked about a report last week that the government was reviewing the phone records of US journalists without their knowledge.—Reuters