BAGHDAD: Iraq's prime minister warned his people to boycott a planned anti-government protest scheduled for Friday, saying it was being organized by supporters of Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaeda. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki gave no proof for his assertion in a nationally televised speech Thursday, which echoed similar statements he's made blaming terrorists and Saddam loyalists for an array of problems in the country. His comments were the strongest to date on demonstrations slated to take place across Iraq that have been described as a “Day of Rage” on Facebook and in Internet postings calling for people to take part in the event. Earlier Thursday, the Iraqi reporter who threw his shoes at President George W. Bush was forcibly detained by the Iraqi Army after making what is believed to be his first public visit to his homeland after being freed from prison. One of Muntadhar Al-Zeidi's brothers told The Associated Press that the reporter returned to Iraq to take part in Friday's rally. Meanwhile, a suicide bomber killed at least eight people and wounded 15 others in the Iraqi city of Ramadi Thursday, police and government officials said. The bomber blew himself up during a ceremony at a cultural centre, Anbar deputy governor Hikmet Khalaf said.
