Objects thrown at Blair before Dublin book signing
03:03PM Sat 4 Sep, 2010
Dublin, Sep 4,2010 (AFP): Angry protesters threw objects at Britain's former prime minister Tony Blair as he arrived at the first public signing session to promote his memoirs on Saturday in the Irish capital Dublin.
Around 200 noisy protesters had gathered for the event and witnesses said objects were thrown at him as his car pulled up. Media reports suggested these included shoes and eggs.
The protesters, who included anti-war activists and pro-Palestinian campaigners, waved placards with slogans such as "Blair lied, millions died" and "Lock him up for genocide" and chanted amid a heavy police presence.
As Blair arrived, protesters surged towards him but were swiftly repelled by police and some demonstrators were led away.
Blair is making an appearance at a bookshop in Dublin to promote his book "A Journey", which was released earlier this week.
Part of Dublin's main thoroughfare, O'Connell Street, where the shop is located, was sealed off and access to the bookshop was being tightly controlled.