- President George W Bush
Digital News Report- An Iraqi journalist, now identified as Muntadhar al-Zaidi ,threw his shoes at president George W Bush during a press conference on Sunday in Baghdad. The reporter supposedly shouted, “this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog” before launching the footwear at the president’s head. Authorities quickly removed the man from the room.
Bush was in Iraq on a surprise visit to sign a new security pact made by Iraq and the U.S. He joked, “If you want the facts, it was a size 10 shoe that he threw,” adding that he didn’t feel threatened. Other reporters apologized for the man’s actions.
In Arabic culture, showing, hitting or throwing a shoe at someone where the sole is aimed at them is a great insult.
The visit was Bush’s fourth since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.