BAGHDAD (AP):

The Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at former United States President George W. Bush was convicted yesterday of assaulting a foreign leader and sentenced to three years in prison, provoking outrage among many Iraqis who consider him a hero.

Muntadhar al-Zeidi's bold act in December electrified many across the Middle East who saw it as a fitting protest against a president widely reviled for his policies in the region, including the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.

A poll released yesterday showed that an overwhelming majority of Iraqis surveyed considered al-Zeidi a hero. The 30-year-old journalist pleaded not guilty to the assault charge, telling the three-judge panel that "what I did was a natural response to the occupation".

Reporters and family members were then ordered out of the courtroom for the verdict, which was relayed to them by defence attorneys and a court official. Defence lawyers said al-Zeidi shouted "long live Iraq" when the sentence was imposed.

Some of al-Zeidi's relatives collapsed after the ruling was issued and had to be helped out of the courthouse. Others were forcibly removed by guards after shouting "Down with Bush" and "Long live Iraq."

"This judiciary is not just," al-Zeidi's brother, Dargham, said tearfully after the verdict was announced.

Al-Zeidi received the minimum sentence for the assault charge but could appeal the conviction, said court spokesman Abdul-Sattar Bayrkdar. He could have received up to 15 years in prison for hurling his shoes at Bush during a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, held on December 14 of last year.