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raudi1
Lurker in the mist


Registered: 03/29/03
Posts: 163
Last seen: 9 years, 27 days
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Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years
#9957252 - 03/12/09 09:16 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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This was taken from Yahoo News -
Quote:
BAGHDAD – The Iraqi journalist who threw shoes at then-President George W. Bush was convicted Thursday of assaulting a foreign leader and sentenced to three years in prison, provoking outrage among some Iraqis who consider him a hero.
Muntadhar al-Zeidi's bold act in December electrified many across the Middle East who hailed his defiant act against a president who was widely reviled for his policies in the region, including the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
The 30-year-old journalist pleaded not guilty to the assault charge, telling the three-judge panel that "what I did was a natural response to the occupation."
Reporters and family members were then ordered out of the courtroom for the verdict, which was relayed to them by defense attorneys and a court official. Defense lawyers said al-Zeidi shouted "long live Iraq" when the sentence was imposed.
Some of al-Zeidi's relatives collapsed after the ruling was issued and had to be helped out of the courthouse. Others were forcibly removed by guards after shouting "down with Bush" and "long live Iraq."
"This judiciary is not just," al-Zeidi's brother, Dargham, said tearfully after the verdict was announced.
Court spokesman Abdul-Sattar Bayrkdar said al-Zeidi received the minimum sentence for the assault charge but could appeal the conviction. He could have received up to 15 years in prison for hurling his shoes at Bush during a Dec. 14 news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Defense lawyers said the judge showed leniency because of al-Zeidi's age and clean record. But they had hoped for an even lighter sentence, arguing the journalist's actions constituted an insult rather than an assault.
"The sentence was unexpectedly harsh," said Yehya al-Eitabi, one of some two dozen defense lawyers who attended Thursday's hearing. He said they would appeal the verdict.
Many Iraqis interviewed in Baghdad agreed.
"Al-Zeidi should have been honored and not sent to prison," said Salam Omar, who owns a mobile phone shop in eastern Baghdad.
Nassir al-Saadi, a Shiite lawmaker loyal to anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada all-star, said the verdict was too harsh.
"Al-Zeidi was expressing his point of view about Bush in a democratic way. The court should have adopted a more humane approach and released him," he said.
But Serwan Gharaib, a 37-year-old journalist in the Kurdish city of Sulaimaniyah, said al-Zeidi had violated journalistic ethics by exploiting his access to Bush.
"I may understand the suffering of the Iraqi people due to the occupation, but I do not understand the bizarre method of protest conducted by al-Zeidi," he said.
The journalist has been in Iraqi custody since the shoe incident. Bush quickly ducked to avoid being hit and was not injured. Al-Zeidi was quickly wrestled to the ground by guards and dragged away.
During Thursday's proceedings, al-Zeidi, wearing a beige suit over a brown shirt and brown leather shoes, walked swiftly to the wooden dock where defendants are kept and greeted the panel of three judges with a nod and a wave.
Presiding Judge Abdul-Amir al-Rubaie asked al-Zeidi to enter a plea.
"I am innocent," he replied.
The proceedings took place under heavy guard with scores of armed policemen inside the courtroom and the Iraqi soldiers who escorted al-Zeidi waiting outside.
The trial began on Feb. 19 but was adjourned until Thursday as the judges weighed a defense argument that the current charge is not applicable because Bush was not in Baghdad on an official visit, having arrived unannounced and without an invitation.
Al-Rubaie read a response from the prime minister's office insisting it was an official visit.
Chief defense attorney Dhia al-Saadi then demanded that the charge be dismissed, saying his client's action "was an expression of freedom and does not constitute a crime."
He echoed al-Zeidi's testimony at the previous hearing, saying his client had been provoked by anger over Bush's claims of success in a war that has devastated his country.
"It was an act of throwing a shoe and not a rocket. It was meant as an insult to the occupation," the lawyer said.
The judge then turned to the defendant and asked whether he had anything to add.
"I have great faith in the Iraqi judiciary. It is a judiciary that is both just and has integrity," al-Zeidi responded.
Many people in the region — angry over the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq — have embraced al-Zeidi. They have staged large street rallies calling for his release, and one Iraqi man erected a sofa-sized sculpture of a shoe in his honor that the Iraqi government later ordered removed.
When al-Zeidi threw his shoes at Bush, he shouted in Arabic: "This is your farewell kiss, you dog! This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq."
Al-Maliki was deeply embarrassed by the action against an American president who had stood by him when some Arab leaders were quietly urging the U.S. to oust him.
If this had happened the other way around and it was an American throwing a shoe at the Iraqi Prime Minister then I'm pretty sure the American would have been punished accordingly too. Why should this guy be honored? That's just ridiculous!
Who throws a shoe? Honestly!
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j0nnyb0y05
IBelieveInBelivin



Registered: 09/01/07
Posts: 2,076
Loc: Going Going, Back Back to
Last seen: 9 years, 8 months
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: raudi1]
#9957274 - 03/12/09 09:24 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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ROFL what ever who cares iraq sucks.
lol at the "who throws a show? honestly" austin powers ftw
-------------------- .....Healing Of People Everywhere.....
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LobsterSauce



Registered: 11/09/08
Posts: 19,884
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: j0nnyb0y05]
#9957287 - 03/12/09 09:27 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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In Ireland,a fella was arrested when he was just about to egg the French president Nicholas Sarkozy.
He had to pay a 450e fine or 5 day's in jail if he didn't pay.
Compare the two.
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blewmeanie




Registered: 10/01/06
Posts: 28,984
Loc:
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: raudi1]
#9957292 - 03/12/09 09:29 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
raudi1 said:
If this had happened the other way around and it was an American throwing a shoe at the Iraqi Prime Minister then I'm pretty sure the American would have been punished accordingly too. Why should this guy be honored? That's just ridiculous!
Who throws a shoe? Honestly!
Consider their perspective, to them George Bush was not just a foreign leader, he was the tyrant who destroyed their country.
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Redstorm
Prince of Bugs




Registered: 10/08/02
Posts: 44,175
Last seen: 4 months, 13 days
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: raudi1]
#9957296 - 03/12/09 09:29 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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throwing th shoes probably wasn't the wisest decision ever, but three years is thoroughly over the top.
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Swyfty Swyf
Shrugsy Shrugs


Registered: 02/20/09
Posts: 7,113
Loc: North Alabama
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: Redstorm]
#9957506 - 03/12/09 10:21 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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Yeah, 3 years seems stiff.
I mean, he didn't even hit Bush!
Bush was sooo fast on that!
It is as if he was expecting it!
That dude who threw the shoes is going to have three cushy years, though.
He is considered a national hero over there.
He is gonna get pizza and KFC delivered to him everyday, free dope, all the Ramen noodles, Chee-tos, and Slim Jims you could want, pruno galore, pussy brought in on the weekends, BJs from Iraqi punks through the week
......he'a got it made!
-------------------- If you build it they will shrug.
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Mankey

Registered: 07/30/05
Posts: 2,203
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: Swyfty Swyf]
#9957566 - 03/12/09 10:34 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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Why would an iraqi throw a shoe? Because he couldnt find a rock.
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highdroponics
Professional Deadhead



Registered: 11/14/06
Posts: 5,574
Loc: Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
Last seen: 11 years, 1 month
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Re: Iraqi who threw shoes at Bush jailed for 3 years [Re: Mankey]
#9957623 - 03/12/09 10:51 AM (14 years, 11 months ago) |
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Right, had I done it, I'd be in prison for life. And I wouldn't be some bitch asking for a pardon either.
-------------------- Dr says to stop trying to treat the side-effects of big government and focus on the core issues. End the Federal Reserve/audit the gold reserves at Fort Knox, abolish the IRS, end all wars and occupancies, stop the building of an empire that will inevitably fail, and cut all unconstitutional federal programs. Put the power back in the peoples' hands by ending this nanny-state.
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