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GUEST: As’ad Abukhalil, author of several books on the Mideast including “The Battle for Saudi Arabia: Royalty, Fundamentalism, and Global Power,” Professor in the Department of Politics at California State University, Stanislaus. Abu Khalil\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s blog is called the Angry Arab News Service online at angryarab.blogspot.com<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n Watch the video of the “shoe throwing incident” here:![\"Iraqi](\"http:\/\/d.yimg.com\/us.yimg.com\/p\/rids\/20081215\/i\/ra3616360247.jpg?x=400&y=304&q=85&sig=E2SGbwdLez5w_dJ9o14XKg--\")
<\/a>President Bush concluded his two day trip to Afghanistan and Iraq yesterday after meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Bush reportedly assured Karzai that the incoming Obama administration would be as reliable as his own had been in supporting the Afghan presidency, even as violence has sharply risen. The visit to Afghanistan followed a secret Sunday trip to Iraq where Bush met with US troops and boasted that the so-called surge strategy was \u00e2\u20ac\u0153one of the greatest successes in the history of the United States military.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d He also met with Iraqi Prime Minister al-Malaki and welcomed what he viewed as the progress of the Status of Forces Agreement, albeit cautioning that the Iraq war was not over. But, Bush’s farewell visit to the two countries most affected by his administration’s foreign policy was marked by an incident that has taken the Arab and Muslim world by storm – the image of an Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at Bush. Muntadhar al-Zaidi, a 28 year old who attended the press conference shouted, “this is a farewell kiss, you dog. This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq,” as he hurled his shoes towards the President. Bush was quick to dodge, and though he missed his intended target , al-Zaidi’s gesture has resonated with millions of Iraqis who marched to demand his release from prison. <\/p>\n
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