Iraqi shoe thrower due in court in two weeks

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at former President Bush will be tried in two weeks, a spokesman for Iraq’s Higher Judicial Council judge told CNN.Muntadhar al-Zaidi faces charges of assaulting a foreign head of state on an official visit to Iraq. The trial is scheduled to begin on February 19, the spokesman for Judge Abdul Sattar al-Beeraqdar said.

Al-Zaidi has been detained for nearly two months and his appearance in court will mark the first time he has been seen in public since his arrest.

Al-Zaidi threw both of his shoes at Bush in mid-December during a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad. Neither shoe hit the president, and others in the room quickly knocked al-Zaidi to the ground before security officials arrested him.

By tradition, throwing a shoe is the most insulting act in the Arab world.

Al-Zaidi’s angry gesture touched a defiant nerve throughout the Arab and Muslim world. He is regarded by many people as a hero, and demonstrators last month took to the streets in the Arab world and called for his release.

Al-Zaidi marked his 30th birthday in jail last month. One of his brothers told CNN he “in good health and is being treated well.”

Al-Zaidi’s employer, TV network al-Baghdadia, keeps a picture of him at the top left side of the screen with a calendar showing the number of days he has spent in detention. The network has been calling for his release.

Also on Sunday, two people were killed and 11 others injured by a roadside bomb targeting Shiite pilgrims headed to Karbala for a religious holiday, the Interior Ministry said.

The bomb exploded in the al-Qahira neighborhood in northeastern Baghdad, the Ministry official said.

The pilgrims were making their way to Karbala for al-Arbaeen, one of the holiest days in the Shiite religious calendar.

In recent years, insurgents have targeted pilgrims on their way to Karbala, located 60 miles (96 kilometers) southwest of Baghdad. The pilgrims walk the distance as a demonstration of piety and as part of tradition.

Al-Arbaeen commemorates the end of a 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed and one of the most revered Shiite figures, who died in battle in the 7th century. He is buried in Karbala.

Last year, a flurry of attacks on pilgrims killed at least 48 people. In 2007, more than 180 pilgrims were killed in a series of attacks, most by suicide bombings in Babil province, through which the pilgrims pass.

Also Sunday, a roadside bomb struck a car in the al-Nahdha commercial area in central Baghdad, wounding two civilians, the Interior Ministry said. The incident was unrelated to the pilgrim attack, authorities said.

Source: CNN World