Consider the source, the UK Guardian, nevertheless my suggestion for Mr. Shoe Thrower, just ask a question next time.

“The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at President George Bush was viciously beaten after being taken into custody, according to a police officer who accompanied him to prison.

Wrestled to the ground and then buried under a frantic mound of security officers, Muntazer al-Zaidi was last seen being dragged into detention. Controversy has since raged over what treatment was meted out to the man hailed a hero in many parts of the Arab and Muslim world for his protest against the invasion of Iraq. Yesterday there were further demonstrations in the Middle East calling for his immediate release.

Witnesses to his arrest and imprisonment have told the Observer Zaidi was badly beaten, during and after his arrest last Sunday, and that he risks losing the sight in one of his eyes as a result.

He is expected to be charged with insulting a foreign leader, which carries a prison sentence of up to two years. His family have received offers from hundreds of lawyers across the region willing to represent him.

An Iraqi judge appointed to investigate his treatment, and who has seen him in his prison cell, said Zaidi has bruises on his face and around his eyes. These, said the judge, had been sustained during his arrest at the Baghdad news conference during which Zaidi threw both his shoes at Bush, shouting: “This is the farewell kiss, you dog.”

His family, who have been denied access to him, have claimed he suffered far more extensive injuries and was subjected to a prolonged and vicious beating, suffering a broken arm, broken ribs and internal bleeding. The allegations appear to be borne out by those who have seen him since his arrest.

One police officer, who accompanied him to prison, said the journalist, a Baghdad correspondent for the Cairo-based Al-Baghdadia TV, had been subjected to violence throughout the journey. The officer, who asked not to be named, said he witnessed security forces beating Zaidi in the car with such force that his ribs were broken. “I felt sorry when I saw them beating him. His mouth was badly injured and he did not utter a single word throughout until one of the guards hit him in his left eye with a gun. Then he cried out that he couldn’t see, and I saw blood inside his eye. I am a police officer but even I have to say I felt proud of what he did.”

A doctor called to examine Zaidi said his right arm had been broken and he had haematomas – indicative of internal bleeding – all over his body, particularly on his left leg, shoulders, face and head. The doctor, who also asked to remain anonymous, said specialists called in to treat him warned security guards that they must make sure his eye was protected for fear of a further haemorrhage which could cause him to lose his sight.”

It’s apparent that Mr. Zaidi wasn’t just a “journalist”, and may have been a lot more. Something the Iraqis found out after taking him into custody.

“Born into a traditional Shia family, Zaidi made no secret of the fact he was vehemently against the US-led occupation of Iraq and, according to family and friends, had said many times he would like revenge on Bush. A younger brother, Haythem, said Zaidi had unexpectedly found himself called on to cover the press conference held by Bush and Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki. His first action, it seems, was to return home immediately to change his foreign-made shoes into Iraqi-made ones.

A colleague at the TV station said Zaidi mentioned just before going home that “if something had to be done, it had to be 100 per cent Iraqi”.

“Muntazer had repeated many times that if he had the chance, he would take revenge against the US president,” said the colleague. “He held him responsible for the deterioration of the conditions we were living in. He just didn’t have the chance before, and being asked to cover the conference was an opportunity for him.”

As Uncle Jimbo writes:

“In Arab culture the act of hosting anyone takes on large implications. Maliki hosting Bush in Mesopotamia carries huge host-related obligations. This douche abused those greatly and beclowned himself according to Arab culture. Shocking that the Iraqis who took him to jail beat his ass. W handled it very well laughing at the Arab jerk, any pissing and moaning shoud be addressed to the sovereign Iraqi government. Shoe man dissed them and paid the price. C’est la vie.”

Like I said, he might have just asked a question. Isn’t that what “journalists” do?

Technorati Tags: