Man throws shoes at Iranian president Ahmadinejad

A jobless man has thrown his shoes at Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to protest at not having received his unemployment benefits.

A report of the incident on a conservative Iranian website Shafaf.ir is a rare example of the Iranian media reporting a humiliation reportedly suffered by the president. The website is close to Ahmadinejad's opponents.

The website identifies the man as a laid-off worker in a textile factory in the northern city of Sari, which the president was visiting.

It says that the shoes missed Ahmadinejad, and the man began to attack the government for his failure to receive his benefits.

Iran officially reports its unemployment rate at about 11%, but some experts say it is much higher.