Iraqi Shoe-Gate: US State Department Defends Muntazar Al-Zaidi?

From The Times of London this morning: "The State Department said that it would issue a condemnation if it were true that Mr al-Zaidi had been beaten up."

Let me help you out, guys, since you're obviously in an information black hole:

The guards of the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki were seen beating Mr Zaidi just after the incident and he was seen screaming in pain.

I look forward, as part of the American defense of freedom in Iraq, to that condemnation.

Iraqi Shoe-Gate: Update on Muntazar al-Zaidi (18 Dec)

Muntazar al-Zaidi "appeared" before an Iraqi court on Wednesday. The ominous note is that he didn't appear.

According to his brother, al-Zaidi was not present at his hearing. Instead, the judge said he had taken a statement from al-Zaidi in his jail cell. Al-Zaidi's family will not be allowed to see him for another eight days. Understandably, the suspicion is that al-Zaidi was not permitted in court because, in the words of his brother, "My brother was severely beaten and [Iraqi authorities] fear that his appearance could trigger anger at the court.”

The political impact of Shoe-Gate was apparent yesterday: "As [the Iraqi] Parliament began to discuss legislation on the withdrawal from Iraq of armed forces from nations other than the United States, a group of lawmakers demanded that the legislature instead take up the issue" of al-Zaidi's detention. The speaker of the Parliament, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, announced his resignation.

Demonstrations for al-Zaidi took place across Iraq. In Fallujah "students raised their shoes and threw rocks at American soldiers, who reportedly opened fire above the crowd".

Iraq and Shoes: The Secret Videos

A reader from London tips us off to the Internet evidence that there was more than one shoe-thrower and more than one object involved in what is becoming known as the Iraqi Sole-Gate. A collection of videos establishes that Tekken, The Three Stooges, The World of Warcraft, and Nintendo's Duck Hunt were all conspirators in hurling Pokeballs, bombs, and even the giant Monty Python foot at our unsuspecting President.

Global Update: Iraq, Shoes, and Video Games

A reader from Turkey updates us on the transformation of serious news into video games.

The Turkish tribute to Muntazar al-Zaidi's throwing of shoes at President Bush includes not one but two on-line challenges:  The Bush Shoe Throwing Game and That Guy Totally Threw a Shoe at Bush: The Game.

Enjoy!

*Our reader adds: "I have read that the thrown shoes were made in Turkey. So, we know at least who gave the shoes to put flowers inside."

Tragic Comedy of Iraqi Shoes: Update on Muntazar al-Zaidi

These may be the most horribly comic sentences I have read in 2008. From The Times of London yesterday:

All those in the Arab world who hailed al-Zaidi's actions should ask themselves what would happen in their own countries if a local journalist tried to hurl insults at President Mubarak of Egypt or President Assad of Syria....Iraq is far from perfect, but at least its people have learnt to enjoy freedom of expression.

Muntazar al-Zaidi enjoyed his freedom of expression by taking a beating from Iraqi security men. He may have broken ribs, a broken arm, and/or a broken hand. He has appeared in court to plead guilty to "aggression against a president". According to a spokesman for the Iraqi Judicial Council, he could be sentenced to up to 15 years in jail.

This, however, can be celebrated as an American- and British-bequeathed freedom to Iraq. After all, as Christopher Howse of The Daily Telegraph assures, "Though I do not envy [al-Zaidi] his time in an Iraqi jail, at least he has not been despatched as he would have been under Saddam."

Thank goodness for Patrick Cockburn of The Independent, who is almost the only American or British journalist I read this morning to set out the full story. The Times does have a follow-up story on its "freedom of expression", although somewhat bizarrely its reporter assures that al-Zaidi was "carried away by prime ministerial guards [with] no sign of excessive violence". (The Guardian has an opinion piece by Samir Ramadani praising al-Zaidi but otherwise ignores the story today.)

In the US, The New York Times has a lengthy article, but it plays down the possible jail time --- no more than seven years and as little as 12 months --- and the possibility of al-Zaidi's injuries. And in The Washington Post?

Nothing. Not a word.