"RELOAD!!! MORE SHOES!!!"
This post was inspired from a previous entry:
QUICK, RELOAD!!! MORE SHOES!!!
In time, I would magnify and mount the image of journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi as a rightful act of defiance. His statement was blatant and clear, shouting : "This is a farewell kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog!"
According to associate information, al-Zaidi was "severely beaten" by security officers after he had been dragged out of the room following the shoe-throwing incident. As the man's screaming could be heard outside, Bush said "That's what people do in a free society, draw attention to themselves."
A "large blood trail" could be seen on the carpet where al-Zaidi had been dragged by security agents. Dawa-owned Afaq TV reported that security forces kicked al-Zaidi and beat him. His family reports that it has received many threatening phone calls.
The United States Secret Service and the Iraqi Police took custody of al-Zaidi. Al-Zaidi was tested for alcohol and drugs, and his shoes were confiscated as evidence.
Al-Zaidi was interrogated by Iraqi and U.S. agents to ascertain whether anyone paid him to throw his shoes at Bush.
In an interview with BBC News, al-Zaidi's brother, Durgham al-Zaidi, reported that Muntadhar al-Zaidi suffered a broken hand, broken ribs, internal bleeding, and an eye injury.
There were calls throughout the Middle East to place the shoes in an Iraqi museum, but the shoes were later destroyed by US and Iraqi security forces to prevent this. Al-Zaidi's shoeing inspired many similar incidents of political protest around the world.
On 15 September 2009 he was released for good behavior, after serving nine months of the sentence.
