The journalist who threw his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush has sent a written apology to the prime minister, declared Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s office.
Yassin Majid, press aide to the prime minister, announced that Muntazer al-Zaidi has sent a handwritten apology note regarding the shoe-throwing incident to the Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, although he didn’t show the note to the press.
The judge Dhiya al-Kenani investigating the case has denied the bail for Muntazer al-Zaidi for his own safety but assured the public that there were minor bruises on his face but it occurred when he was arrested, not afterward.
Zaidi understands the gravity of the situation and has confessed to the crime, according to the judge Dhiya al-Kenani:
"When he was asked whether he had acted on the orders of a political party or for money, he said ‘no.’ And when asked if he was aware of the effect of his gesture, he answered ‘yes’."
The judge declared that the punishment would have been more severe if the shoes had actually hit President Bush; so Zaidi may escape with a slight punishment for just throwing the shoes at Bush and he informed the press that the shoes were destroyed to make sure they didn’t contain any explosives hidden inside. When asked about the only piece of evidence being destroyed Kenani replied the following:
"I would have preferred to have had the shoes as evidence for the case but since Muntazer al-Zaidi has confessed to his action and that the television pictures confirm it, the investigation can continue,"
"This information is absolutely not true. This is a lie. Muntazer is my brother and I know him very well. He does not apologize…But if it happened, I tell you it happened under pressure,"delared Zaidi’s brother.