YESTERDAY Iraqis of all of the different sects and persuasions were united and marching and demonstrating in Baghdad, Basra, Najaf, Kerbala, Tikrit, Fallujah, Mosul and in many other cities and towns for the immediate release of their hero, Muntazer al-Zaidi, who on all their behalfs threw his shoes at the head of President George W Bush, the butcher of Iraq, along with a choice epithet.
Al-Zaidi perfectly described the president as the Iraqi people see him, when he shouted: ‘this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog,’ before hurling a shoe which narrowly missed Bush’s head.
As he hurled the second shoe he shouted: ‘This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq.’
His truthful declaration of the dreadful massacres of US and UK imperialism, made face to face with their blood-soaked organiser seemed to paralyse the gathering with its boldness and also its timeliness.
Maliki stared uncomprehendingly ahead and then sought to guard Bush’s head from the second shoe, while the assorted secret service agents and bodyguards froze as their master was called to account, meaning that if the heroic journalist had been an assassin George W Bush would be history.
However, the calling of Bush to account by the shoe attacker has succeeded in doing something that not even a successful assassination attempt could have done.
It has awakened the historic Iraqi people and united them. It has enabled them to recover their historic pride as a nation that has played a most vital role in the development of human civilisation.
It has also increased their determination to get the occupiers out of Iraq as soon as possible.
Yesterday, there were reports coming in from all over Iraq, of people throwing their shoes at US convoys, demanding that the US and allied soldiers leave Iraq at once, and that their hero journalist be freed at once.
There were also reports coming in from all over the Arab world, from the Lebanon and from Palestine in particular, of spontaneous demonstrations of joy that an Iraqi Arab had the courage to confront the tyrant in his Green Zone lair and call him to account.
The support extended to hundreds of lawyers from all countries including the US and the UK who had volunteered to defend Muntazer al-Zaidi for free.
In the Iraqi capital, ordinary people gathered to discuss the heroic deed. A middle aged woman said: ‘He behaved like a real Iraqi. He took revenge on Bush for all of us – Sunni and Shi’ite – for the American crimes in Iraq.’
Another woman said that: ‘He was not a crazy man or a terrorist. Most Iraqis feel like this.’
The shallowness of Bush and his inability to address the issue also disgusted Iraqis and many others. When asked about the shoe throwing, he said: ‘I don’t know what the guy’s cause is.’ He later commented: ‘If you want the facts, it’s a size 10 shoe that he threw’.
However, it was a lot more than a size 10 shoe that was thrown at the US president.
What was thrown in his face was the defiance of the Iraqi masses, and their determination that every occupation soldier will quit Iraq.
The act signifies the re-birth of a great and historic nation, which suffered an enormous blow when the imperialists and their agents publicly hung their Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein.
The masses of Iraq are now on the march.
They will be determined to free Muntazer al-Zaidi and all political prisoners.
They will be determined to see to it that the recently signed unequal treaty between the US masters and their Iraqi puppets is ripped up.
They will be determined to see that all occupation troops are thrown out of Iraq and that the Iraqi people are able to have a freely held election to elect the government of their choice.
The five-year period of the imperialist domination of Iraq is coming to an end!
