Lawyer: Iraqi shoe thrower to be released early - September 14th

[Liberal_in_LA]

Source: USA Today

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi journalist jailed after hurling his shoes at former President George W. Bush will be released next month after his sentence was reduced for good behavior, his lawyer said Saturday.

Muntadhar al-Zeidi's act during Bush's last visit to Iraq as president turned the 30-year-old reporter into a folk hero across the Arab world amid anger over the 2003 invasion.

He has been in custody since the Dec. 14 outburst, which occurred as Bush was holding a joint news conference with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

He was initially sentenced to three years after pleading not guilty to assaulting a foreign leader, then the court reduced it to one year because the journalist had no prior criminal history.

Defense attorney Karim al-Shujairi said al-Zeidi will now be released on Sept. 14, three months early.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2009-08-29-shoe-thrower-release_N.htm?csp=24&RM_Exclude=Juno

[LuvNewcastle]

1. Good for him!

Now he can get on with his life.:)

[saigon68]

27. YES and so can WE with Sock & Awe

http://www.sockandawe.com/

Its still around

Your "WHIP A SHOE AT THE CHIMP" game

[jimlup]

2. Give the guy a medal!

This guy is a hero in my book.

[BREMPRO]

17. The IOC should start a new Olympic Sport -"Shoe Throwing"- in his honor!

He didn't hit his target, but he should still get an honorary gold.

[sunwestdog]

20. What do you mean he's a hero?

A true hero would have nailed Bush right between the eyes. His heart was in the right place, but his lack of aim keeps him one level below "hero".

[robo50]

3. I'm sure the USA can give him political assylum here.

Where he can write the inside story about Iraq, and how Bush destroyed so much for so little.

[boredonafriday]

4. I still remember that day.

It was the most memorable moment from Bush's presidency :rofl:.
I'm new here, so K&R, i guess? :kick:.

[trusty elf]

10. Dodging those shoes was definitely one of junior's greatest achievements.

Welcome!

[boredonafriday]

70. Thanks.

[lunatica]

77. LOL!

[JBoy]

5. I hope he got his shoes back, because those would be worth some serious money now.

[Dinger]

6. Come Here For A Visit Muntadhar

:patriot:

[brewens]

7. I thought they locked him up for missing! n/t

[boredonafriday]

9. Didn't he..

Threw two shoes at Bush. The first one missed, and the second one struck him? i forgot :shrug:.

[brewens]

12. No, he missed.

Bush must have been sobered up pretty good that day. Maybe had a few in the morning to get rid of the shakes. He dodged both shoes.

[RoccoR5955]

8. He will be remembered as a national hero in Iraq! n/t

[ro1942]

11. made my day

wish our leaders would have got him out sooner but this is great news.

[Submariner]

13. He deserves the Medal of Freedom

[clixtox]

76. What fun!

I can easily watch that few seconds of video for a very long time. Entertaining few seconds of political protest!

Thanks for the reminder that heroes still walk the Earth.

I do wish though that he had been an aspiring major league pitcher in his youth, but he was probably into soccer("Football" in most of the rest of the world).

[notadmblnd]

14. he never should have been jailed in the first place

[ScottLand]

15. Good for him.

I have a friend from Lebanon and I asked him "In Lebanon, would you throw one shoe at Bush or is it customary to throw both?"

In honour of al-Zeidi, I think we should all throw a shoe at Bush wherever he appears!

[hmorehead]

16. His was a civil demonstration after all

he wore slippers. If he'd worn some Doc Martins it might have ended that stupid war then and there. He needs to come here and talk about the whole thing. I am glad he's alive.

[bertman]

18. This whole nasty business of locking up the shoe thrower makes me wonder how

President Obama would have reacted in the same situation. No doubt he would have dodged the shoes--probably would have snagged them in mid-air and handed them back to the guy. Beyond that, my guess is that Obama would have worked hard to make sure the guy was not even sent to prison and beaten within an inch of his life, as was reported.

Okay, there's my President Obama fantasy for today.

[moonbatmax]

26. There's just one thing:

Obama wouldn't have got INTO the same situation.

No invasion of Iraq...

No mishandled occupation...

No Abu Ghraib...

No shoe-throwing reporter!

Amazing how that works out, innit?

[bertman]

32. I see you've taken my fantasy moment one notch higher.

If you had said no escalation of troop deployments in Afghanistan or no additional U.S. military bases in Colombia you would have punctured my bubble.

[moonbatmax]

73. Well, I don't know about Columbia...

but I tend to think we might have wrapped up Afghanistan a little more quickly without the little side trip, and maybe that way have avoided any need for escalation.

Of course, that assumes 9-11 would have happened, too. I thought about bringing that up re Al Gore, but... that might have been pushing it. :)

[steven johnson]

19. If the shoe fits

[Hawkeye-X]

21. He'll have a permanent job... OSTTB

Official Shoe Thrower To Bush.

I'll pay him to throw shoes in Dallas.

[Hulk]

22. A true WORLD class hero!

I would LOVE to shake this brave man's hand.

I only hope he is repaid for his courage and determination to let the world know what so many of us felt toward this coward and scum sucking wind bag that was once the president of a once great nation.

I have the greatest respect for this man.

[TankLV]

23. Good! Finally - JUSTICE is done!

Now the world waits for JUSTICE to be done - and for bush*, cheney rove, wolfowitz, you, gonzo and all the rest of the WAR CRIMINALS to be ARRESTED, TRIED, and GIVEN PUNISHMENT IN THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LAW!

[Cha]

24. Muntadhar al-Zeidi is a Hero in my world, too..

Bet this is making the bush+cheney real pissed!

I want the reporter to watch his back and have his friends watching it too!

[MetaTrope]

25. This should calm down Iraqis a week after American soldier Steven Dale Green gets sentenced

as ringleader of the gang-rape of a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and murder of her and her family.

[saigon68]

28. He was only a Little Misguided

Amazing that little Turd never made Eric Prince's all amerikan dream team.
</sarcasm>

[Vidar]

29. Surely some one needs a Prime Minister.

[mrbarber]

30. Good

That man is a hero.

As for those saying it was to bad he missed-if he had hit the war criminal, do you think he would still be alive today?

[fascisthunter]

31. with hero's welcome

[Brother Buzz]

33. If he doesn't land a book deal, a shoe endorsement surely is in the works

Muntadhar al-Zeidi is a hero and principled man in my eyes and I believe he has a story from a prospective that needs to be told to western readers.

[eridani]

35. The Turkish shoe company that made the brand is rolling in money now n/t

[Brother Buzz]

36. Cool beans if that shoe company compensates al-Zeidi is some fashion

I really want him to write the book. Every western publisher knows the hook, "the shoe thrower" will translate into sales, and a book from an Iraqi journalist's perspective on what really happened during those dark years leading up to the shoe tossing moment should make for a good read.

[NJCher]

34. wish there was some book material here

I'd like to see the guy make some money off it, at least to take a little of the sting out of the miserable experience he had in prison.

Cher

[yurbud]

37. I hope they made his cell like a five star hotel

[AsahinaKimi]

38. Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush to be released early

Source: AP NEWS

By KIM GAMEL, Associated Press Writer Kim Gamel, Associated Press Writer – Sat Aug 29, 12:09 pm ET


BAGHDAD – An Iraqi journalist imprisoned for hurling his shoes at former President George W. Bush will be released next month after his sentence was reduced for good behavior, his lawyer said Saturday.

Muntadhar al-Zeidi's act of protest during Bush's last visit to Iraq as president turned the 30-year-old reporter into a folk hero across the Arab world, as his case became a rallying point for critics who resented the 2003 U.S. invasion and occupation.

"Al-Zeidi's shoes were a suitable farewell for Bush's deeds in Iraq," Sunni lawmaker Dhafir al-Ani said in welcoming the early release. "Al-Zeidi's act expressed the real will and feelings of the Iraqi people. His anger against Bush was the result of the suffering of his countrymen."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090829/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq_shoe_thrower

---

[nilram]

39. Yes!!! HA!

I bet there will be cheering in the streets!

[AuntPatsy]

40. This one really bothers me....he only did what so many wish they had had the courage

and or opportunity to do...and what did he get for his heroic deed? Punishment...makes one wonder if there truly is a God when murders and thieves walk freely while those with the true courage to take real action are punished...

[stray cat]

41. Assault is even illegal here when its not a president

[AuntPatsy]

44. And your point? The man was beaten? For what????

throwing a shoe was done as children..this world and by far this country is getting more than ignorant..

[Botany]

45. So is murder .... the man lost family members thanx to W's war.

1 million + Iraqis are dead
4- 6 million are homeless
there is still no steady power and water to many people in the country
whole neighborhoods have been ethnically cleansed
God only knows the # wounded and crippled

The man had had enough and stood up for many of his countrymen.

[HughMoran]

42. Good - let the hero go

:)

[depakid]

43. Now there's some good news!

[lib_wit_it]

46. Looks like ole Georgie was used to ducking--he was too damn quick for my liking! I wonder if Cheney

regularly threw things at him.

[zogtheobvious]

59. He's used to ducking because...

...he's been ducking things since Vietnam, when he ducked out of his responsibility.

[lib_wit_it]

68. You're right, zog. II don't know how I missed the obvious!

[zogtheobvious]

72. You know, I've been using that nick for something like 2 years or so....

...and other than my friends who know me in person, nobody has ever commented on it before now, so I guess it's not THAT obvious!

;)

[AsahinaKimi]

66. I just love that...

THE GIF that just keeps GIVING... (Just wish he would have connected)

[pitchforksandtorches]

47. May the FSM bless Muntadhar al-Zeidi - he had a lot of sole.

nt

[zogtheobvious]

60. Don't be too offended by Pitchforkandtoches' descent...

...into punnery. He's normally a very straight-laced individual!

BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAH!!

:crazy:

[pitchforksandtorches]

67. President Bush was attacked by a 'shoe-icide' bomber.

[zogtheobvious]

71. I hear his arch-rivals were highly amused though!

[lib_wit_it]

75. Well, everyone knew the heel deserved it.

[zogtheobvious]

79. Yep he did deserve it. And he will knot forget this anytime soon!

Edit: Fixed some incoherent grammar

[winyanstaz]

48. About time...and by the way...this guy deserves a medal!

[PurpleChez]

50. Hear hear!

I so wish he'd actually hit that smirking pile of shit.

[Rozlee]

49. Personally, I think it's too soon for his sentence to end

He needs some community service tagged on to his sentence. I suggest giving him W's new address and more shoes.

[Arrowhead2k1]

51. I can't believe he spent so much time locked up for THAT.

I hear they abused him too in the aftermath.

[Number23]

65. I was thinking that same thing

It's a terrible shame he's been in jail this long.

[704wipes]

52. he could bring a gun to an Obama forum

nt

[llmart]

53. He had the courage to do.....

what millions of Americans only dreamed of.

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[felinetta]

55. What is joyous is that Bush has to hear about it again. I'm so happy about his release.

[santamargarita]

56. Throw a shoe at a Fascist Pig, they should give him a medal

Good!

[Arkana]

57. *insert Ricky Ricardo laugh*

[DesertFlower]

58. great news. nt

[Hulk]

61. The man is a hero!

This man will be famous for the rest of his life....and respected by the international community for his action.

I'd LOVE to shake his hand and offer my gratitude someday.

[Skittles]

62. I wish him joy

he certainly brought me some :thumbsup:

[David__77]

63. He should leverage his noteriety.

He could do much good.

[tomm2thumbs]

64. Nike should hire him as a spokesperson for a new line of shoes

[saigon68]

69. `

[Prometheus Bound]

74. I strongly recommend posts 10, 13 and 43 if you want to have a hearty 15-minute laugh.

or longer

My goodness that was enjoyable.

[lunatica]

78. His fame is set for life.

I'm sincerely happy that they're releasing him.