Reporter accuses prison guards of torture

Muntazer al-Zaidi, the Iraqi television reporter jailed for throwing his shoes at former US President George W. Bush, was finally freed yesterday, ending a nine-month stint in prison.

He said he was tortured by electric shocks and simulated drowning in custody.

Yesterday night his brother said he quickly went into hiding fearing for his life.

Mr al-Zaidi had been behind bars ever since he shouted "it is the farewell kiss, you dog," at Mr Bush last December 14, seconds before hurling his size-10s at the man who ordered the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Speaking at the office of his employer at the time of the incident, Al-Baghdadia television, Mr Zaidi - who was missing a front tooth - said: "I was tortured with electric shocks, beaten with cables."

The reporter's tone was defiant but he denied that he was a hero, saying he had been ashamed of the suffering he had seen in his country and had seized the opportunity to insult the man he held responsible.

"For me it was a good response; what I wanted to do in throwing my shoes in the face of the criminal Bush was to express my rejection of his lies and of the occupation of my country," Mr Zaidi said.

He added: "At the time that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on television that he could not sleep without being reassured on my fate ... I was being tortured in the worst ways, beaten with electric cables and iron bars."

The 30-year-old reporter said he wanted an apology from Mr Maliki, adding that his guards had also used simulated drowning on him - the technique of water-boarding used by the Americans on suspects arrested over the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.

"I am now free but my country is still captive. I am not a hero, but I have attitude and opinions," he said. "I feel humiliated to see my country suffer, my Baghdad burning, and my people killed."

Television pictures earlier show-ed the reporter, wearing a sash in the colours of the Iraqi national flag around his shoulders, and sporting sunglasses and a thick beard, being led into the studios of his employer.

The journalist's family and friends ululated when they heard the news by telephone at their home in Baghdad. They have prepared a sheep for slaughter in celebration of his homecoming.

Mr Zaidi was initially sentenced to three years for assaulting a foreign head of state but had his jail time reduced to one year on appeal.

His sentence was cut further on account of good behaviour.

Although Mr Bush, who successfully ducked to avoid the speeding footwear, laughed off the attack, the incident caused massive embarrassment, to both him and Mr Maliki.

The leaders had been speaking at a joint press conference in Baghdad on what was Mr Bush's farewell visit to Iraq prior to being succeeded in office by then President-elect Barack Obama.

If the shoe fits, throw it

When he hurled his footwear at US President George W. Bush in Baghdad last December 14, the journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi not only became an instant hero, he also started a trend.

Copycat incidents to date have included:

• February 2: Martin Jahnke, a German student at Cambridge University in England, throws a sports shoe at Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, who is giving a speech on the campus. The projectile misses its target, and Mr Jahnke is later acquitted of committing a breach of the peace. "I was very pleased with the result," he says, adding that he was seeking to highlight human rights issues in China.

• February 4: Students throw a shoe and other projectiles at Israel's ambassador to Sweden as he gives a speech at Stockholm University on his country's elections.

One of the projectiles hits the diplomat, who is not injured, and two students are detained by police.

The protest was apparently against Israel's devastating offensive in the Gaza Strip at the end of 2008.

• April 7: A Sikh journalist hurls a shoe at India's Home Affairs Minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, during a news conference on the issue of terrorism.