Iraq shoe-thrower defiant
Güncelleme Tarihi:
AFP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 20, 2009 00:00
BAGHDAD - The Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at George W. Bush defiantly defended his actions in court yesterday, saying he had become emotionally overwhelmed when confronted by the ex-U.S. president.
Muntadhar al-Zeidi won global fame when his footwear whizzed past Bush's head on Dec. 14 as the then president was making a farewell visit to Iraq before leaving the White House. His lawyers used the trial's opening arguments to assert that the remarkable protest was lawful, but the judge brought proceedings to a halt 90 minutes later, saying more information was needed about Bush's trip.
The 30-year-old journalist told the court that he had become outraged and been unable to control his emotions when Bush, who ordered the invasion of Iraq, started speaking.
"I saw only Bush and it was like something black in my eyes," he said from the dock, with an Iraqi flag draped across his shoulders. "So I took the first shoe and threw it but it did not hit him. Then spontaneously I took the second shoe but it did not hit him either. I was not trying to kill the chief of the occupation forces of Iraq."
"We as Arabs are proud of our sense of hospitality, but Bush and his soldiers have been here for six years," he said. Zaidi argued that Bush's trip to Iraq had not been an official visit. One of the three trial judges then said the trial would be adjourned until March 12. "We have adjourned the trial so that we can contact the PM's office to find out if the visit of the ex-American president Bush was an official visit or not," he said. The reporter faces up to 15 years in prison if found guilty of assaulting a foreign leader.
The 30-year-old journalist told the court that he had become outraged and been unable to control his emotions when Bush, who ordered the invasion of Iraq, started speaking.
"I saw only Bush and it was like something black in my eyes," he said from the dock, with an Iraqi flag draped across his shoulders. "So I took the first shoe and threw it but it did not hit him. Then spontaneously I took the second shoe but it did not hit him either. I was not trying to kill the chief of the occupation forces of Iraq."
"We as Arabs are proud of our sense of hospitality, but Bush and his soldiers have been here for six years," he said. Zaidi argued that Bush's trip to Iraq had not been an official visit. One of the three trial judges then said the trial would be adjourned until March 12. "We have adjourned the trial so that we can contact the PM's office to find out if the visit of the ex-American president Bush was an official visit or not," he said. The reporter faces up to 15 years in prison if found guilty of assaulting a foreign leader.