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.

Corruption and Intrigue in Afghanistan

Sarah Chayes, who runs a cooperative in Afghanistan, has a compelling but disturbing account (printed in full below) in The Washington Post. In contrast to most headlines that focus on "the Taliban", Chayes' anger is directed at the Government:

Most of my conversations with locals about what's going wrong have centered on corruption and abuse of power.

Chayes rejects negotiations with the Taliban: "Ask any Afghan what's really needed, what would render the Taliban irrelevant, and they'll tell you: improving the behavior of the officials whom the United States and its allies ushered into power after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks." She makes the disturbing assertion, "What I've witnessed in Kandahar since late 2002 has amounted to an invasion by proxy, with the Pakistani military once again using the Taliban to gain a foothold in Afghanistan."

Indeed, that allegation is doubly disturbing because, on the same day, The Times of London writes of Pakistani Major-General Faisal Alavi, "murdered last month after threatening to expose Pakistani army generals who had made deals with Taliban militants".

Iraq: Your Daily Shoe Update

I think it's safe to say that the star of the Bush Farewell Tour is Muntazar al-Zaidi --- sitting in a prison cell somewhere in Iraq --- rather than the President.

Both The New York Times and The Washington Post have Page 1 stories: "In Iraqi’s Shoe-Hurling Protest, Arabs Find a Hero" and "Flying Shoes Create a Hero In Arab World".

In Saudi Arabia, a newspaper reported that a man had offered $10 million to buy just one of what has almost certainly become the world’s most famous pair of black dress shoes.

A daughter of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, the Libyan leader, reportedly awarded the shoe thrower, Muntader al-Zaidi, a 29-year-old journalist, a medal of courage.

In the Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City, people calling for an immediate American withdrawal removed their footwear and placed the shoes and sandals at the end of long poles, waving them high in the air. And in the southern Iraqi city of Najaf, people threw their shoes at a passing American convoy.

When he threw the first shoe, Mr Al-Zaidi cried, "This is a goodbye kiss, you dog." It's when the other shoe was thrown, however, that Mr Al-Zaidi delivered his political punchline, “This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq!” McClatchy News Service reported that al-Zaidi was shaken by the destruction he found when covering the military operations in April as Iraqi Government troops, supported by US forces and bombardments, took control of Sadr City in Baghdad.

 It's doubtful that Mr al-Zaidi is aware of his status, as he remains in detention. Associated Press is reporting that he has been handed over to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's security guards. He faces up to seven years in prison for "insulting the nation's leader".

Thousands of Iraqis marched on Monday to demand al-Zaidi's release, a call joined by tribal chiefs around the country and by journalist organisations inside and outside Iraq.

(hat tip to Informed Comment)

Gaza: This is News, This is Not News

BBC Radio 4's Today programme has an extended item on Israel and Palestine this morning, as Prime Minister Gordon Brown is meeting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, but its only reference to Gaza is "Palestinian militant groups, of which Hamas is the largest" and "the possibility of incipient violence." The New York Times does consider Hamas but in the context of a possible division in the leadership over continuation of a truce with Israel. The Washington Post is concerned about a parade in which Hamas "bragged about its violent exploits".

Hmmm....what could be missing here? I don't know, maybe....

Gaza Families Eat Grass as Israel Locks Border

Around the World on A Saturday: From Iraq to Zimbabwe to North Korea

IRAQ: BLINK AND YOU'LL MISS IT

You might think that, two days after the deadliest bombing in Iraq in six months, the media might want to consider the impact. However, a day after noting the death of 57 Iraqis and the wounding of many more in Kirkuk, everyone has blissfully walked away.



They have done so even though the choice of the restaurant, where Kurdish and Arab leaders were meeting over ethnic tensions in the city, might indicate that someone is quite intent on derailing the political process. Juan Cole even speculates that Iraqi President Jalal Talebani may have been the Number One target.

ZIMBABWE: THE NEW YORK TIMES WAKES UP

Continuing our coverage of Better Late than Never, the editorial staff of the Times have finally noticed the situation, although they don't advocate US involvement: "[The African states] must renounce their recognition of Mr. Mugabe as president and press him and his cronies to cede power."

More substantially, The Washington Post notices an even deadlier situation across the continent, courtesy of a UN report, "Rwanda and Congo have been backing rival rebel and militia groups locked in a violent conflict in eastern Congo that has displaced more than 250,000 civilians since August."

NORTH KOREA: THE FINAL BUSH FAILURE?

Almost eight years after throwing out the negotiating process to halt North Korean development of nuclear weaponry and more than three years after realising that the big stick wasn't going to deter Pyongyang, the Bush Administration suffered a last humiliation when North Korea effectively walked out of talks.

PAKISTAN PLAYS FOR TIME

Richard Oppel and Salman Masood in The New York Times have figured out Pakistan's strategy in dealing with the aftermath of Mumbai. Their article depicts the  "house arrest" of the leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hafiz Muhammed Saeed.

With such measures, Islamabad hopes to stave off calls for extradition of Saeed and other LeT leaders, a step which would likely bring the downfall of the Zardari Government.