Richard Perle Was Right

George Bush got his statue in Iraq after all.

A sofa-sized statue of the shoe was unveiled Thursday in Tikrit, the hometown of the former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

Baghdad-based artist Laith al-Amari described the fiberglass-and-copper work as a tribute to the pride of the Iraqi people.

The statue is inscribed with a poem honoring Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi journalist who stunned the world when he whipped off his loafers and hurled them at Bush during a press conference on Dec. 14.

In the Arab world, even showing someone the sole of a shoe is considered a sign of disrespect.

Look at the picture on that page, there seems to be no way it's not from The Onion. And yet, with George Bush, anything is possible.

Heckuva job.

Shoe Thrower Update

Munthadar al-Zaidi's trial was delayed in Baghdad today, as an appeal was raised asking whether throwing a shoe at a foreign leader really counted as assault. I don't know about that, but 15 years in prison for it seems excessive.

Now that the Arab street is roiled by Gaza, maybe the al-Zaidi uprising will subside. But I'd be willing to bet that al-Zaidi walks on appeal. Maliki's actions have been fairly political lately, and with a threat to internal security possible from a conviction, and provincial elections coming up, I wouldn't be at all shocked with a January surprise.

...Drip, Drip, Drip, Drip...

There were demonstrations in Iraq calling for the release of Muntathar al-Zaidi in Falluja, in the Sunni Triagle, and in the Baghdad Sunni neighborhood of Adhamiya. This is not relegated to a concern of Sadrist Shiites. In Falluja, US troops fired warning shots:

University students rallied for Zaidi in Fallujah on Wednesday, drawing the attention of U.S. forces.

Students raised their shoes and threw rocks at American soldiers, who reportedly opened fire above the crowd. Protesters said that indirect fire wounded one student, Zaid Salih. U.S. forces haven't confirmed the account.

"We demonstrated to express our support for Muntathar al Zaidi, but we were surprised with the entrance of the U.S. military," said Ahmed Ismail, one of the protesters. "Unconsciously, we raised our shoes expressing our support for al Zaidi, but they attacked us."

I'm sure that won't escalate.

The mood in Iraq these days is, well let's call it "tense". Yesterday demonstrators blocked the passage out of the Green Zone and ignored warning shots.

Al-Zaidi has formally apologized to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for his conduct and begged for forgiveness (his brother thinks it was coerced). For geostrategic reasons alone, he should be set free.

...This raid of the Interior Ministry is interesting. Maliki is clearly using a paramilitary group that he calls an "elite counterterrorism force" to muscle out all his competition. The idea that this was a foiled coup attempt doesn't make sense at all. He is just consolidating power. But if he fails to understand the danger of the al-Zaidi case and the popular movement that could erupt, it won't matter.

Drip, Drip, Drip

The Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament has resigned over the al-Zaidi arrest.

Iraq's parliament speaker announced his resignation Wednesday after a parliamentary session descended into chaos as lawmakers argued about whether to free a journalist who threw his shoes at President George W. Bush.

The speaker, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, has threatened to resign before and has been suspended for embarrassing the prime minister with erratic behavior.

On Wednesday, after arguments erupted among lawmakers over the fate of the journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the speaker said: "I have no honor leading this parliament and I announce my resignation."

al-Mashhadani is a Salafi elected on the Iraqi Accord Front list, a Sunni-led slate. So much for the idea that only Shiite Sadrists supported al-Zaidi.

Meanwhile, as rallies seeking al-Zaidi's release continue, he received a judge in his jail cell rather than a courtroom today, pleading guilty to the charges.

THE Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at United States President George W. Bush has appeared before a judge in his jail cell because he is too injured to appear in a courtroom, his brother says.

The al-Zaidi family went to Baghdad's Central Criminal Court expecting to attend a hearing, his brother, Dhargham, said.

He said the family was told that the investigative judge went to see al-Zaidi in jail, and to return in eight days, Associated Press has reported.

"That means my brother was severely beaten and they fear that his appearance could trigger anger at the court,'' Dhargham said.

The anger is already being triggered. This is very dangerous.

Al-Zaidi Update

Forced by my blog post (lol), The Bush Administration had to respond to the detention and beating of shoe thrower Muntadar al-Zaidi. You'd never guess, but apparently he's passing the buck on it.

"The president believes that Iraq is a sovereign country, a democratic country, and they will have a process that they follow on this," White House press secretary Dana Perino told reporters. "The president harbors no hard feelings about the incident."

It's just the wrong reaction. Iraq may be sovereign but so is every other country on Earth and that doesn't stop us from commenting on their internal affairs, and at times invading them. So long as we have 140,000 Americans in that country, we have a responsibility to do what we can to maintain order. This is the consequence of silence:

Thousands of Iraqis demonstrated on Monday, demanding the release of Muntazar al-Zaidi, the journalist who threw shoes at Bush.

In the Shiite holy city of Najaf, south of Baghdad, crowds threw shoes at an American military patrol.

Al-Hayat reports in Arabic that tribal chieftains in Kirkuk and Diyala Provinces showed solidarity with al-Zaidi and demanded his release.

While Najaf is Sadrist country, Kirkuk is most definitely not. This can easily get out of control. Requesting al-Zaidi's release is not a moral decision, it's a geopolitical one.

Munthadar Al-Zaida=Gavrilo Princip?

I think there's reason to be very concerned about the fallout from the shoe throwing incident in Iraq. It's fun to joke about and all ("Bush hasn't dodged anything that fast since the draft!"), but the consequences are likely to be grave. The act of defiance at an American President has galvanized opinion in the Middle East. I don't want to call him Munthadar the Plumber, but that's the basic dynamic.

Arab and Iranian TV stations have gleefully replayed the clip, sometimes in slow motion, of an Iraqi reporter calling Bush a "dog" and throwing his shoes at him -- the Middle East's tastiest insults -- at a Baghdad news conference on Sunday.

The affront was a twisted echo of the triumphal moment for Bush when joyous Iraqis used their footwear to beat a statue of Saddam Hussein toppled by U.S. invading troops in 2003.

"It indicates how much antagonism he's been able to create in the whole region," former Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher told Reuters, adding that the incident was regrettable.

Bush had harmed America's reputation and the friendship many had felt for it. "Despite past mistakes in its policies, there was always a redeeming factor. In this particular case, there doesn't seem to have ever been a redeeming factor," Maher said.

Now we're learning that this guy, seen as a hero by a non-trivial segment of the Arab world, has been charged with assault (on the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, not Bush), thrown into Camp Cropper prison and tortured.

Albaghdadia, the TV channel where the Iraqi Journalist Montather Al-Zeidi works, reports that an Iraqi MP (Ms. Zainab Al-Kanani) informed them that Montather’s hand was broken in jail.

This confirms a lot of reports and rumors about Montather being subject to torture while the Iraqi authorities are interrogating and detaining him in some unspecified location.

The BBC confirmed this. There have been two days of mass demonstrations calling for Al-Zaidi's release. The news that he's being tortured will only exacerbate matters.



The fact that the charge against Maliki actually worries me most. To the extent that the central government is blamed for torturing and detaining Al-Zaidi, the Sadrists, already full-throated in their support, may see their anger turn to violence. This is an unstable country without full popular support for the ruling leaders. If a mass movement erupts around Al-Zaidi, the result would be complete chaos. And the Sunni insurgents, even the Kurds, may find an opening to resume hostilities.

It's made worse by the rumblings that the US won't stick to their withdrawal commitments as outlined in the status of forces agreement. Maliki and the US will be blamed for scamming the Iraqi people and keeping them under permanent occupation. This silencing of dissent will become a powerful symbol. There aren't a lot of steps from there to violence.

This is why Bush must forgive Al-Zaidi and work to get him removed from prison. It won't restore his public profile in the Middle East, but it would quell a threatened riot and at least put some weight behind the principle of free expression. Thers says it best:

Mr. President, please publicly forgive Muntadhar al-Zeidi for throwing shoes at you, and please state, unequivocally, that the Iraqi journalist should not face charges or endure official harassment for his actions. If American values mean anything at all, this is the right thing to do [...]

In the United States, "insulting a visiting head of state" is not a crime. Nor should it be. Throwing a shoe could certainly be illegal, and hustling a shoe-thrower out of a press conference would certainly be understandable. But pressing charges?

We value vigorous dissent in this country. So much so, that even when objects are publicly hurled at controversial speakers, we do not necessarily prosecute, and if we do, we do not consider the "insult" the specific crime at issue. Property damage as a result of such an incident might be a felony, but never an "insult." [...]

President Bush, you need to avoid this "big problem." Do this one thing, this one small thing, for the sake of peace. Forgive Muntadhar al-Zeidi and call for his immediate release, and call for him to be protected against all forms of official harassment.

Do this one right thing before you leave.

Let me second the call. Do not listen to know-nothings calling this man an "ingrate" for not appreciating American sacrifice. That's nonsense. We have invaded this country under false pretenses, killed hundreds of thousands, displaced millions, allowed 70% to live without access to water or electricity, and brought a once-great society to rubble. It is perfectly human to feel frustration and rage.

And if you refuse to open your mind enough to think of that, think about Baghdad on fire for the last month of your Presidency. Think about security gains lost. I'd ask you to think about the dead, but you won't, so think about your legacy.

I don't usually think calling the White House is worth a hill of beans, but give it a shot in this case. 202-456-1111 is the White House switchboars, and the Iraqi Embassy is at 202-742-1600.

These things have the tendency to quickly spiral out of control. The safety of perhaps tens of thousands of people is at stake. Please, Mr. President, you have the power to fix this.

...well, at least the President is not insulted. That's the IMPORTANT thing. Also, this is a mess:

Clearly, one of the most important parts of my job because of 9/11 was to defend the security of the American people. There have been no attacks since I have been president, since 9/11. One of the major theaters against al Qaeda turns out to have been Iraq. This is where al Qaeda said they were going to take their stand. This is where al Qaeda was hoping to take ...

Raddatz: But not until after the U.S. invaded.

Bush: Yeah, that's right. So what? The point is that al Qaeda said they're going to take a stand. Well, first of all in the post-9/11 environment Saddam Hussein posed a threat. And then upon removal, al Qaeda decides to take a stand. And they're becoming defeated and I think history will say, one, the world was better off without Saddam, two, along with the Iraqi troops we have denied al Qaeda a safe haven because a young democracy is beginning to grow, which will be an important sign for people in the Middle East.

I don't even know what to say there. He's admitting that he invaded Iraq for no reason and doesn't seem to care.