Iraqi shoe-thrower offered cars, wives

Brilliant reflexes may have saved former United States president George W Bush the ignominy of being hit by his shoes, but that has not stopped Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi from reaping a windfall of goodwill from fellow countrymen for his action.

Now that he is set to be free, nearly nine months after his imprisonment for hurling shoes at Bush at a press conference last year, Muntazer is being inundated with offers of cars, money and wives. He became an instant folk hero in the Arab world after his December 14 action, which he said was in protest against the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

It caught the imagination of people who believed his act of defiance did to the US what their leaders had been scared to do. Now, the windfall. Muntazer’s former boss has built a four-bedroom home for him and promised a car. His employer, the al-Baghdadia television channel, is inundated with pledges of harems, money and healthcare from well-wishers, according to the Guardian newspaper.

“An Iraqi who lived in Morocco called to offer to send his daughter to be Muntazer’s wife,” the Telegraph quoted editor Abdul Hamid al-Saij as saying. Another called from Saudi offering $10mn for his shoes, and another called from Morocco offering a gold-saddled horse. “After the event, we had callers from Palestine and many women asking to marry him, but we didn’t take their names. Many of their reactions were emotional. We will see what happens when he is freed,” he added.

Muntazer was sentenced to one year in jail, which has now been reduced to nine months for good conduct, is planning to open an orphanage after he leaves prison and will not work again as a journalist, sources said.