Shoe thrower 'beaten in custody' (BBC)

[underpants]

Source: BBC

The brother of the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at US President George W Bush has said that the reporter has been beaten in custody.

Muntadar al-Zaidi has suffered a broken hand, broken ribs and internal bleeding, as well as an eye injury, his older brother, Dargham, told the BBC.

Meanwhile, offers to buy the shoes are being made around the Arab world, reports say.

The Iraqi authorities have said the 28-year-old will be prosecuted under Iraqi law, although it is not yet clear what the charges might be.

Iraqi lawyers have speculated that he could face charges of insulting a foreign leader and the Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al Maliki, who was standing next to President Bush during the incident. The offence carries a maximum penalty of two years in jail.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7785338.stm

[AlabamaBrightBlueDot]

1. Democracy in action.... nt

[Rebubula]

38. To be fair...

..Iraq is not a democracy and even though the bushit admin wants to export our brand of police brutality - the level of police abuse in Iraq was always greater than ours. Under the previous regime, disappearings happened all the time.

That said...this guy has shown the level of courage of national heroes. Though you should never expect to get a pass when you physically attack a head of state - I hope that he becomes free soon.

To speak freely in this country is a right and most people come home in time for dinner. There are many parts of the world where this is not true. Just because we commit human rights violations does not mean that we are the only one or the worst one.

I still believe in this country and its people.

[ixion]

2. very sad...a guy throws a shoe and

gets his bones broken? Pathetic.

[underpants]

3. It is against the law to insult someone?

really?

[eilen]

4. for the "free" people of Iraq

I guess so. George Bush, bringing freedom to.. wait, no... just another police state.

[tblue37]

13. It is here, too, according to King CheneyBush. When a man complained to

Cheney about the Iraq occupation, he was attacked by SS and then charged with assaulting Cheney, when all he did was say something to him. The SS lied so much they contradicted each other when telling their versions of the story.

[pedo]

15. not just anyone

a foreign leader and the prime minister, but yeah. he did more than verbally insult them.

[Window]

46. And for that he should be beaten badly???

[pedo]

56. i did not say that

[tinrobot]

24. It's not the insulting, it's the throwing.

But throwing an unloaded shoe is a misdemeanor at best.

Give the guy time served and let him go...

[jeff30997]

26. "throwing an unloaded shoe "

Lol!Sorry,I just pictured a loaded shoe being thrown at Bushler.:)

[sam sarrha]

67. and it was full of candy and flowers..

[humbled_opinion]

40. Oh Please

Even by our standards in America it was assault. He had his right to say what he said and do what he did and he should be applauded for standing up for his rights. But when you throw something at someone with intent to cause harm you have committed assault.

[not fooled]

43. OK so it's assault at worst...

...does that justify beating the man to the point of inflicting broken bones?

Read "Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein to find out why prisoners associated with the regimes in US and Iraq are tortured and beaten. More to it than just retribution for insulting or even assaulting a leader.

[underpants]

48. Fine then charge him with assault-it was

not "insulting" someone

[Divine Discontent]

5. ahhhh, the sweet smell of Democracy! George is so proud of his $500 Billion Mess, er, Success!

I cannot wait for the good people to take over in DC soon...


These designs on dozens of different shirts, button, stickers, mugs & more! http://www.cafepress.com/warisprofitable/1434671

[Peggesis1]

6. sorry

dupe deleted

[Peggesis1]

7. That's a description of potentially fatal injuries (internal bleeding)

I hope he is able to get appropriate and immediate medical treatment. What are his chances of survival if he remains in custody? I still fear for his life.

[underpants]

8. If this guy "falls down 38 times" there is going to be some real trouble

I hope the best for him too-for the Iraqis and for the US military personnel who now man posts in the communities.

[Festivito]

9. Is this the democracy we've spread in action?

When we started ours we were advanced by our lack of such action. Did we teach them this.

[underpants]

10. Welcome to Dick Cheney's world

At least we ARE importing something
:sarcasm:

[harun]

11. Yep, this is 1 trillion dollars worth of freedom.

[Jester Messiah]

12. Isn't that standard operating procedure in Iraqi prisons?

Heck, isn't that SOP in ours?

[onehandle]

14. He's alive? nt

[awoke_in_2003]

39. surprised me, too. nt

[Wetzelbill]

16. well you knew that would happen

[yellowcanine]

17. All I can say is it is a good Iraq is now "free". Otherwise we might think the thugs were still in

charge. :sarcasm:

[acmavm]

18. Prosecuted??? They oughta give the guy a MEDAL!

[Yukari Yakumo]

41. Libya already gave him one

The only ones who wants to prosecute him is Bush's puppet government. Everyone else sees him as a hero and wants him freed.

[RufusTFirefly]

19. Per-fect! Here's your international incident, Mr. Obama!

... and here are the keys to the White House. See ya later!

[YOY]

20. They would have done the same to Stephen Colbert if they had the chance.

This guy has a set of Colbert size balls that's for sure.

[Kittycat]

21. Apparently 'the brother' isn't a valid source

According the fucked up nutbags I'm debating with on another site... Who also think that a Majority of Iraqi's love bush.

[azul]

22. Death of a martyr in prison?

And the world sees a smirking chimp beyond any reach of justice giving the thumbs-down.

This ought to inspire attacks on the perpetrators? Or was this just all staged just to arouse the hornet's nest to free up more money for the war department?

I don't trust anything Bushco does. Did it appear that he was prepared to duck, sobered-up?

[bdamomma]

23. No one can insult or tell the truth to Boy King

disgusting, Cheney and Bush need to be arrested not this man.

[balantz]

25. Here's what they want to know from us in their black/white, NAZI world:

"You're either with us, or you support the terrorists."

They beat the messenger (us and our message) to pass on "their" message.

[Eric J in MN]

27. Thank goodness Iraq is a free country now.

(sarcasm)

[Alcibiades]

28. Lèse majesté

Dissent is not supposed to be criminal in a democracy.

[kenichol]

29. This man reminds me of the young Chinese man in front of tanks

The courage of this Iraqi journalist reminds me of that pro-democracy Chinese young man, standing alone in front of the tank. I pray he is not hurt, tortured to cause him permanent pain. My prayers and admiration go out to him.

[slackmaster]

32. Assaulting someone doesn't take real courage

A blind testosterone-fueled rage is usually sufficient.

[marasinghe]

63. i'm pretty new here ...

thanks for your enlightening remarks, on the objective criteria for evaluating courage.
pray tell me more.

it'd be interested to know - does bombing peasants in far-eastern rice fields, from 10,000 feet, qualify? perhaps, rolling through the desert in 4-inch armour plated vehicles & blasting mud-brick dwellings with depleted uranium projectiles, counts?

because, thanks to your rational & objective assessment of the situation, i now see that - standing up before a bunch of thugs & throwing one's footwear at a heavily protected mass-murdering p-o-s swine, who was the enabler and sponsor of the self-same bunch of gangsters who would have total control & custody of said shoe-hurler after the fact, and, knowing full well that the result would be, at the very least, broken bones for oneself, and, possibly, the destruction of one's family as well, hardly touches the surface of courageous behavior. because it was done in a blind testosterone-fueled rage; not in any kind of calculated, cold-blooded manner, & sans - planning, equipment, and backup forces of any kind whatsoever.

amazing, how the human mind works. you have, indeed, opened my eyes to the facts. much obliged.

[Nihil]

65. Welcome to DU!

(And nicely written BTW)
:hi:

[earcandle]

30. Bush and his whole crowd are barbaric.

IF you notice, they go after people to hurt, torture, and kill
them, not to treat them with human dignity as to their cause,
nor give them a fair trial, in the name of our country.  And
now, to appease Bush, Iraq's must beat the hell out of this
folk hero?  What a context.

Oh, by the way, isn't this economic meltdown akin to what we
caused to happen in Russia not that long ago?  Have they
turned their tactics even against their own?  And for what
purpose?  Are we going to see riots, bombs, and suicides here
soon too?  We are on the edge.  Can we be triggered?  Is that
what we want?  Is this what we are avoiding impeachment for? 
Have we gone batty as a collective, from all that mad cow
beef?  Why are the real criminals not taken into custody here?
 Why do corporate criminals pay fines that are meaningless,
but sound impressive, instead of go to jail?  How do we face
our children on ideals and concepts raised in our
constitution, and not hold this administration accountable for
the intentional ruin of our economy, our legal system, our
security systems, our health systems, our educational systems,
our monetary systems?  Am I the only one that sees this in
this bigger context?  

Are we are going to punish Blagovich for speaking his mind
(not actually taking action or causing any crimes) in his own
home, and not punish this administration for their crimes
mentioned above?  Who is really in charge here?  Have we
become a sea of anarchists who don't know our ass from a hole
in the ground, aside from our opinions and point of views,
which we are free to express?  Is that really freedom? 

Someone help me out here? 

[Quantess]

64. Try reading what other DUers have already blathered about, for starters.

Sorry if that sounded rude. All of your questions have already been addressed here at DU. You just need to know where to look.

:hi: Welcome to DU!

[slackmaster]

31. The guy is lucky to be alive

The Secret Service could have machine-gunned him down on the spot, and nobody in authority would have questioned their actions.

If you throw a shoe at someone in the USA it's reasonable to expect to go to jail. Do it in a backward, violent Muslim nation and things are not going to go so well for you.

[LibDemAlways]

47. I wouldn't characterize Iraq as "backward." It's the very

cradle of civilization, and it's hardly the Iraqis' fault that they were illegally invaded and had their infrastructure pretty much destroyed and countless citizens killed/maimed by US actions. "Backward" and "violent" - we wrote the book.

[alfredo]

33. A must see Joel Pett cartoon

[uppityperson]

37. That is so not funny, but I am laughing at the cowering coward.

[alfredo]

51. That will be bush's legacy

[navarth]

34. Well I'm ready to contribute to this guy's defense fund, if there is one.

It would be a HUGE help to the situation if the American people said collectively: "We don't want this guy to be beaten. Bu$h does NOT represent us."

[Plucketeer]

35. Bush and Cheney have both uttuered a summation that.....

....shows how they feel about the twisted turmoil they've wrought. The contentious and insulting utterance of "SO WHAT?" should be the slogan that's forever associated with this criminal regime!

[uppityperson]

36. k&r. I wonder if mrbush&co understand this may percipitate a crisis in the middle east?

Best thing to do would be send a representative out to check on him, and make sure that whatever happens to him is good and in public.

[sam sarrha]

42. considering the region.. he's lucky he he didn't get a broom stick up his ass too...

[BelgianMadCow]

45. or wasn't forced to listen to his children being raped

or tied to bars in the freezing cold
or waterboarded
or ...

80+ % of Abu Ghraib prisoners were innocent.

[Fumesucker]

55. Umm.. The Abner Louima incident was in NYC.. n/t

[sam sarrha]

66. they are really brutal there..good thing Allah is merciful

[happylib]

44. Head on

apply shoe directly to the forehead
apply shoe directly to the forehead
apply shoe directly to the forehead

[underpants]

49. Welcome to DU

Very funmy

[happylib]

52. I've been here for years and years

and was too lazy to make an account.

If this happened in the US. The guy would have atleast been tasered. 'Don't tase me Mohammed'
Then the cops would do legal assault by the book with authorized use of force by body slamming his face into a wall 20 times, and choke him. Then write it up that he slipped and fell. Hell in Phoenix they killed a woman locked in airport security room who chocked herself to death with handcuffs.

In a way there is more democracy in Iraq and other parts of the world than in the US. Cops here beat the shit out of you and then charge you with assaulting a police officier. I can't see how Iraq justice system could be any worse, this guy would get alteast 10 years in prison or more in the US. I'm surprised the neocons have said he is part of Al Ciada

[Adam42069gc]

50. ASSHOLE BUSH!

Now who didn't see that coming?!?! That's REAL CHRISTIAN of you Bush, such a christian thing to do! You sir are NOTHING

BUT A HYPOCRITE! HOW DARE YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO CALL YOURSELF A CHRISTIAN & PRO-LIFE! War IS NOT PRO-LIFE:grr:! You

Bush are NOTHING BUT A WARMONGERING:nuke:ASSHOLE THAT LOVES TO SEE INNOCENT IRAQI CITIZENS KILLED DAILY IN YOUR WAR FOR

OIL! I WISH SOMEONE WOULD HAVE ASSASSINATED YOU 7 YEARS AGO!!!:party: ONE LIFE TO SAVE MILLIONS,:thumbsup: THAT SOUNDS

LIKE A GOOD DEAL TO ME:evilgrin:, ESPECIALLY WHEN THAT ONE LIFE IS A LYING, STUPID ASS, IGNORANT, NO COMMON SENSE,

WARMONGERING ASSHOLE HYPOCRITE LIKE YOURSELF! THERE WILL BE NO JUSTICE FOR ALL THE SOLDIERS & INNOCENT CIVILIANS KILLED

BECAUSE OF YOUR TOTAL IGNORANCE AND LACK OF RESPECT FOR ANY HUMAN LIFE WHATSOEVER UNTIL YOU FACE THE SAME THINGS ALL

THOSE INNOCENT PEOPLE DID SUCH AS TORTURE, HUMILIATION, MUTILATION & DEATH, BECAUSE JUST DEATH IS WAY TO GOOD FOR YOU!

YOU & DICKHEAD CHENY NEED TO BE TORTURED FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS AND THAT WILL STILL NOT BE ENOUGH TO RIGHT ALL OF

THE ATROCITIES THAT YOU & YOU MINIONS HAVE COMMITTED!
:rant:

[libodem]

53. Bush should use one of his pardons for this poor man

cuz if you think that he's not the boss of Iraq and that it's somehow a sovereign nation, you miss something. The shoe thrower is a martyr, he proving the fallacy of Bush's statement's that Iraq is somehow a different, better country than it was.




The shoe-thrower, is proving that Iraq has not changed in the glorious ways that Bush extolled. As for the prison conditions, don't fool yourself, I'll bet they are the worst, most inhumane in the world!!!!!

[Peregrine Took]

54. This guy's brutal treatment is the cherry on the top of the bush

administration's 8 year violent regime.

The final thumb in the eyeball to all his critics - along with his last minute attempts to ruin environmental and Endangered Species legislation.

[Quantess]

57. I wish I could send him flowers.

Poor guy.

[snot]

58. K&R'd. To paraphrase John Donne . . .

"Ask not for whom the shoe-thrower throws; he throws for thee."

[AmyCamus]

59. Muntadar al-Zaidi deserves a Pulitzer, not jail.

FUGWB.

[Show Thrower]

60. Global Hero

Muntadar al-Zaidi is not only a hero in Iraq and the Arab world he is a global hero! His courage and sacrifice should be honored by taking off ones shoes and facing the sole toward George Bush every time he is in public. If the world is forced to endure George Bush walking free; then George Bush should travel the earth seeing the soles of shoes. I am not Arab, but I think it is appropriate that all the public ridicule directed at George Bush be in the form of an Arab gesture. After all the majority of his crimes were perpetrated against the people of Iraq and the Arab world.

[Beam Me Up]

61. Excellent idea. Welcome to DU. n/t

[earth mom]

62. No doubt he will be beaten within an inch of his life. * will make sure of it.

:puke: