Iraqi journalist Muntader al-Zaidi has been released from prison after 9 months. He says he was tortured while in custody and plans to name names.
He also says he plans to flee Iraq. According to the New York Times, he intends to travel to Greece for medical treatment.
The article describes how he came to land in prison, but his shoe throwing protest aimed at George Bush is well known.
A few new details from the times:
Muntader al-Zaidi said that when he was arrested after hurling his shoes at Mr. Bush at a December news conference, those inside could probably still hear his screams. He said he was shackled, soaked in water and kept in a place with no heat in the cold night.
Mr. Zaidi described what happened over the next few hours. "At the time the Prime Minister went on a satellite television station, saying that he did not go to sleep until he made sure that I found a comfortable bed and a cover, at the very same moment he was talking, I was being tortured," he said. He added that his treatment in custody included "electric shocks and being beaten by electric cables and steel rods."
One detail I had forgotten, or maybe never read about before, was this Orwellian quote from George W. Bush at the time of the incident:
"That’s what people do in a free society, draw attention to themselves," (Bush) said.
No. That's what victims of an illegal occupation do.