Shoe-thrower said to be unrepentant

Iraqi journalist Muntather Zaidi told his family he would never apologize to President Bush for hurling his shoes at the American leader, his brother said Sunday after visiting the detained correspondent for the first time.

Zaidi has become an unlikely hero to Bush administration critics for lobbing two shoes at the president Dec. 14 during a news conference in Baghdad. His actions have been widely praised in the Middle East and elsewhere by religious leaders, ordinary people and governments opposed to the United States, and even prompted marriage offers.

Zaidi, a 29-year-old television journalist from the Cairo-based satellite channel Baghdadiya, was detained by Iraqi authorities and has been kept out of the public eye since the incident.

The Iraqi government announced last week that Zaidi had written a letter to Prime Minister Nouri Maliki requesting forgiveness for attacking Bush. But the journalist’s brother, Uday Zaidi, challenged the government’s assertions after Sunday’s visit.

“Muntather said that he was forced to apologize to Maliki and he will never, never apologize to Bush, even if they cut him into small pieces,” he told The Times after his visit with his brother.

Zaidi said his brother had lost a tooth and that his nose required stitches because of the beatings he had suffered in custody.

“There were multiple bruises all over his body,” he said. “There were cigarette burns behind his ears. He was beaten with metal rods. His eyes were swollen. They have assigned two medical doctors . . . to provide him with treatment in order to hide the evidence of torture.”

His statements could not be independently confirmed. But a judge investigating the case told the Associated Press on Friday that the correspondent showed signs of having been beaten while in custody.

According to his brother, the journalist had declared that he had no regrets about throwing his shoes at Bush.

“If I went back in time, I would do the same thing,” Uday Zaidi quoted his brother as saying.

He added that his brother had been ready to die, quoting him as saying: “I thought I was going to be shot immediately as I saw the bodyguards with the guns standing there, but I really did not care. I was prepared for anything because I did this for my country.”

Meeting with Iraqi reporters Saturday, Maliki criticized Muntather Zaidi for giving the world a “bad image” of Iraq and harming the reputation of its journalists.

Even so, Maliki said he had made sure that the journalist had a pillow, clean sheets and clothing on his first night in custody. He said that the courts would decide the man’s fate.

Before speaking, Maliki listened to Iraqi reporters condemn Zaidi’s behavior.

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ned.parker@latimes.com