VivirLatino

While the protagonist of the shoe toss seen round the world, Muntadar al-Zaidi, remains in jail and is by many accounts being tortured, there seems to be more debate as to where the shoe came from and how people can get one.

Some say the shoe is from Lebanon, others say it’s from Iraq, and a Turkish company is claiming it’s model 271 is THE shoe.

Though most shoes commonly available in Iraq are factory-made in China, Mr. Zaidi’s brother dismissed such reports, as well as those claiming the shoes came from Turkey or Lebanon:

“One hundred percent they are Iraqi-made shoes,” Udai al-Zaidi told Reuters. “His shoes are not Chinese, nor Turkish.”

Udai said they came from the Baghdad factory of Iraqi shoemaker Alaa Haddad, viewed as among the country’s best.

Meanwhile, Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak ran a front-page story — with accompanying headline, “Made in Turkey,” — stating that the shoes were consistent with a design by Turkish businessman Ramazan Baydan:

Baydan said he had designed the style in 1999, and orders from Iraq had increased by 100% since the Bush incident.

“If it had hit Bush’s head it wouldn’t have hurt him,” he said of his shoe, apparently referring to the softness of the leather.

Lebanese newspaper as-Safir also ran a front-page story with a photo showing Zaidi during a recent visit to Beirut with the headline, “Did he buy the shoes in Beirut?”

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