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BETTY
NGUYEN: And with that, you can see why it's now the
most-Googled video of the day. Can you believe it?
That shoe-throwing incident happened yesterday during
President Bush's surprise trip to Iraq. The man who
hurled the footwear, well, he is an Iraqi journalist
and the gesture is a regional insult. CNN's Michael
Ware is in Baghdad.
You know, Michael, the president's headed back to the
states now, but this trip in Iraq was surely
memorable and maybe not in the way that he wanted it
to be.
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, no, I suspect
not, Betty. But, I mean, this really was an
extraordinary event. And for the president, it will
be unfortunate that it doesn't matter what he said or
what he did here, all the people will remember is
this moment.
And indeed the journalist, a 28-year-old from Sadr
City here in the capital, is currently enjoying the
hospitality, so to speak, of an Iraqi jail. But let's
go back first and have a look at just what happened.
WARE: And this new Iraq, full of progress, as
President Bush would like to see, is exemplified by
the actions of this journalist. According to the
president himself, as you saw, he said that, you
know, this is an act of free expression. That free
expression has landed the journalist in jail and
perhaps reflecting popular opinion here in Iraq
today, the charges they're investigating are not for
assaulting the American president . . .
NGUYEN: President. Yes, it's more about the prime
minister because he was standing next to him, right?
WARE: Yes. Exactly. Exactly. And I think that's the
government or the investigators tapping into the way
Iraqis are responding to this incident -- Betty.
NGUYEN: That is very interesting. Okay. Michael Ware
joining us live.
Thank you, Michael, for that.
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MICHAEL
WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In Iraq, it was the morning
after the American president had to duck for cover.
When an Iraqi journalist at a press conference threw
his shoes -- the height of insult in this culture --
at the American president, opinions were divided the
next day here on the ground. Evenly, people split
between those who supported his actions -- a fierce
protest said President Bush deserved no less -- were
opposed by those who condemned the action, not
because President Bush did not deserve it, but that
the journalist should not have done it in front of
the Iraqi prime minister and embarrassed him.
Also, it seems to be universally accepted among
Iraqis today that the journalist should not be
sitting in a jail, and popular opinion appears to
sympathize with his sentiment, if not his methods.
And indeed, in his home neighborhood of Sadr City,
hundreds took to the streets in angry protest,
setting American flags ablaze, and calling for the
journalist's release.
This is almost certain to be one of the most lasting
images of this war, and that will become part of the
legacy of this American administration.
Michael Ware, CNN, Baghdad.
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MICHAEL
WARE: And the fiery young Iraqi journalist at the
center of all this, a 28-year-old from the Sadr City
slum here in the capital Baghdad, is still sitting
somewhere in security forces custody, most likely
somewhere in a prison cell.
The prime minister's office here says that the young
man is being investigated for possible charges -- not
connected to assaulting President Bush, but for doing
it in front of the Iraqi prime minister, and hurling
the shoes in the prime minister's general direction
rather than at President Bush's head, TJ.
TJ HOLMES: Okay, I think I heard that right, but --
the guy was targeting the president --
WARE: Oh, yeah.
HOLMES: -- of the United States. But just because the
Iraqi prime minister was in the vicinity, that might
really be what gets him in trouble. All right. I
think we've got you there.
WARE: Yeah, brother. This is Iraq.
HOLMES: All right. Michael Ware, let me ask you one
more here. This is the thing that is overshadowing
the visit itself, and that security agreement that's
put in place.
How do Iraqis feel about that security agreement
that's going to lead eventually to U.S. troops
leaving Iraq?
WARE: Well, to be honest, much like the American
public, the Iraqis really don't know much about this
agreement. Indeed, few journalists have probably read
the document beyond the headine. They know the
headline.
This is the beginning of the end of the American
phase of this war. And the irony is, despite
President-elect Obama coming into power vowing to end
the war, the administration that started it has
pretty much finished it as well.
So this agreement says U.S. troops, whether you want
to be here or not, non-negotiable, no questions, no
petrol, you're out of here in three years no matter
what's happening on the ground. That's not what
America wanted. That, for the Iraqis, is a blessing
and a curse. In one way, the Iraqis are happy to have
the occupation because it's keeping warring factions
apart so they can breathe for a bit. Although their
hope is dwindling and starting to question, because,
you know, these guys, they're just tired of it. They
want the tanks out of their streets. From the moment
Saddam was removed, they said thank you very much for
that, what time are you leaving -- TJ.
HOLMES: You know, we can't blame them for that. This
has been coming up on year six now. Michael Ware for
us in Baghdad. Thank you so much.
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RICK
SANCHEZ: Let's do this. Before we do anything else,
let's take you to Baghdad. That's where Michael Ware
has been following this story. He's joining us now
with the very latest on this.
Take us back to when this happened and what the
reaction has been there since, Michael, if you would.
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you can see
clearly from this extraordinary film that is almost
certainly going to become an icon of the war in Iraq
what happened.
There is a press conference. President Bush arrives
without any warning. He's going through all these
sort of formal meetings, a sort of show and tell, you
know, dog and pony show, ceremony for the signing of
the agreement.
And in the middle of the press conference, this guy
just stands up, no warning, and starts hurling the
shoes at President Bush's head. Now, today in Iraq,
it's the morning after the night before, because this
happened overnight in Iraqi time.
When the people woke up here, you know, this was
clearly the talk of the town. And opinions divided
pretty much equally straight down the middle. Some
people criticize this Iraqi journalist for doing
this. They say that it's not about throwing it at
President Bush. It's about doing it in front of
Maliki.
President Bush is Maliki's guest. You embarrassed the
man. And it's impolite. Others say President Bush
deserves this and more. Across the board, everyone
agrees the guy shouldn't go to jail and that whether
you approve of his etiquette or not, you understand
why he did it.
So, that's the reaction here on the ground, Rick.
SANCHEZ: It's amazing, and especially when you
consider that this guy is all but being made a hero
at this point. And it may be a bad move to keep him
behind bars.