Bush shoe attacker’s actions outcome of occupation

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: An Iraqi parliamentarian on Tuesday said the actions of journalist Muntadher al-Zaydi, who threw shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush at a press conference in the capital Baghdad, were the result of occupation. “What Muntadher al-Zaydi, a correspondent for al-Boghdadiya satellite channel, has done was the outcome of five years of occupation, during which he has been meeting people and sharing their grief,” MP Nour al-Din al-Hayali from the Iraqi Accord Front (IAF) said during a Baghdad-based press conference attended by IraqiNews.com. “His actions were meant to console Iraqi mothers and widows who have lost their beloved ones as a result of the invasion of Iraq,” Hayali added. “It is part of his job as a media correspondent to express public opinion and to help form it. This, however, does not mean that we encourage media staff to attack officials,” Hayali added. The parliamentarian urged the Iraqi judiciary to take into consideration the national motivations behind Zaydi’s actions. Residents of Baghdad’s eastern Sadr City on Monday took to the streets calling for the release of al-Zaydi, who threw a pair of shoes at Bush during a joint press conference with the Iraqi premier two days ago. President Bush quickly ducked when a pair of shoes was hurled at him Sunday. Zaydi, 29, has worked for al-Boghdadiya since its establishment in the wake of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. He was kidnapped late last year by unidentified gunmen while stepping out of his home in al-Bab al-Sharqi area, central Baghdad. Four days later he was found lying on the ground near auto selling stores in al-Nahda square, Baghdad, at a late night hour. Zaydi is considered one of the journalists outspokenly criticizing the presence of U.S. forces in Iraq. He had written several reports opposing the U.S. military presence in the country. To Iraqis, the incident represented a major insult to the U.S. president. SS (S) 1