President Bush, left, ducks a thrown shoe as Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki tries to protect him Sunday.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) - President Bush made an unannounced, farewell visit Sunday to Baghdad, Iraq, where he met with Iraqi leaders, talked to reporters and was targeted by a shoe-thrower, who missed his mark.

Before midnight (4 p.m. ET), the White House announced that the president had left.

The incident with the shoe-thrower occurred early in the evening in Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's palace inside the heavily fortified Green Zone, as Bush was addressing members of the news media and the two leaders were preparing to sign the Strategic Framework Agreement and the Status of Forces Agreement.

The man, seated with reporters, spoke in Arabic as he hurled his shoes toward Bush. Both projectiles sailed past his head, with the second striking a U.S. flag behind the president and falling harmlessly to the ground. The man too fell to the ground, where he was grabbed and dragged screaming from the room.

During the incident, the man could be heard yelling in Arabic, "This is a farewell ... you dog!" His full quote, captured on video, was not immediately clear.

As the man continued to scream from another room, Bush said, "That was a size 10 shoe he threw at me you may want to know."

Among Arab culture, throwing one's shoes at another is considered the ultimate sign of contempt.

"So what if the guy threw his shoe at me?" Bush told a reporter in response to a question about the incident. "Let me talk about the guy throwing his shoe. It's one way to gain attention. It's like going to a political rally and having people yell at you. It's like driving down the street and having people not gesturing with all five fingers.

"It's a way for people to draw attention. I don't know what the guy's cause is. But one thing is for certain. He caused you to ask me a question about it. I didn't feel the least bit threatened by it.

"These journalists here were very apologetic. They were, you know, they said this doesn't represent the Iraqi people, but that's what happens in free societies where people try to draw attention to themselves.

"I guess he was effective, because he caused you to say something about it."

Full story

President Bush shakes hands with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad Sunday.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) - President Bush made an unannounced visit Sunday to Baghdad, Iraq, where he was to meet with Iraqi leaders and address U.S. troops.

Bush landed at Baghdad International Airport and then was taken by helicopter to the Green Zone, where he shook hands with President Jalal Talabani.

As the U.S. and Iraqi national anthems played and Iraqi troops looked on, he and the Iraqi president walked along a red carpet. Bush was to meet with a number of other Iraqi officials.

His trip was to celebrate the conclusion of the Strategic Framework Agreement and the Status of Forces Agreement, the White House said.

The president departed Andrews AFB at 9:32 p.m. Saturday, accompanied by White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten; Gen Doug Lute, the senior National Security Council official responsible for Afghanistan and Iraq; National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, presidential counselor Ed Gillespie and spokeswoman Dana Perino.

In remarks to reporters, Hadley described the situation in Iraq as "in a transition."

"For the first time in Iraq's history and really the first time in the region, you have Sunni, Shia and Kurds working together in a democratic framework to chart a way forward for their country," he said. Lute predicted that next year will be "a year of transition" in Washington and Iraq. "We are moving into a different relationship, a relationship with Iraqis rightfully exercising greater sovereignty," he said.

Full story