inundated with offers and gift

Muntazer al-Zaidi, who threw his shoes at George Bush, will be set free on 14 September. Martin Chulov meets the family of a man who who became a symbol of resistance to the US .

A new four-bedroom home has been built by his former boss.

A new car – and the promise of many more – awaits.

"One Iraqi who lived in Morocco called to offer to send his daughter to be Muntazer's wife," said editor Abdul Hamid al-Saij.

"Another called from Saudi offering $10m for his shoes, and another called from Morocco offering a gold-saddled horse.

"After the event, we had callers from Palestine and many women asking to marry him, but we didn't take their names. Many of their reactions were emotional. We will see what happens when he is freed."

"I said we are willing to present him with a bride loaded with gold," said Jouda. "We are people of our word. If he decided to marry one of our daughters we would respect what we said.

"We are compassionate and supportive to the Iraqi people for what they have gone through.

"We are people who have tasted the bitterness, sorrow and agony of occupation too. What he did, he did for all the Arabs, not just the Iraqis, because Bush was the reason behind the problems of all the Arab world."

Muntazer al-Zaidi has told Maitham, and another brother, Vergam, that he is planning to open an orphanage when he leaves prison and will not work again as a journalist.

"He doesn't want his work to be a circus," said Vergam. "Every time he asked someone a difficult question they would have responded by asking whether he was going to throw his shoes at them."

"He will stay in Iraq, but first he has to leave the country to get his health fixed," said Vergam.

In the run-up to his release, Maitham has a sense of the reception awaiting his brother.

"I feel like Michael Jackson at the moment. Everywhere I go, people are taking pictures of me and asking for my photo. If they do that for me, what will they do for Muntazer himself?"

source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/09/bush-shoe-thrower-release-iraq