Muntadhar al-Zeidi

(Newser) - Throwing a shoe at someone is hardly a positive gesture anywhere, but in Arab and Islamic countries, footwear is viewed as ritually unclean: Even mentioning your shoes while insulting someone carries vile significance, the BBC reports. Accidentally displaying an exposed sole is also considered insulting, so yesterday’s loafer-launching aimed...

(Newser) - Thousands marched across Iraq today to demand the release of Muntazer al-Zaidi, the little-known Shiite journalist who threw his shoes at President Bush yesterday. Though Bush spent last night making shoe puns—I have my assailant’s “sole,” he quipped—Iraq’s government was less amused, charging al-Zaidi...