Iraq PM office says shoe-thrower apologizes

He should still get time in jail for this........

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – An Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush apologized to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki for embarrassing him before the watching world, the prime minister's office said on Thursday.

TV reporter Muntazer al-Zaidi shot to instant fame when he called Bush a "dog" in Arabic at a joint news conference with Maliki in Baghdad last Sunday and threw both his shoes at Bush in a gesture that is a deep insult in the Arab world.

"Zaidi said in his letter that his big ugly act cannot be excused," said Yasin Majeed, Maliki's media adviser.

Majeed said that Zaidi added: "But I remember in the summer of 2005, I interviewed your Excellency and you told me, 'Come in, this is your house.' And so I appeal to your fatherly feelings to forgive me."

Zaidi's whereabouts remained unknown four days after he became a hero to those who blame the American president for the tens of thousands of Iraqi deaths that followed the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081218/ts_nm/us_iraq_bush_shoes