Heckler diverts Obama in terror policy speech

WASHINGTON: An anti-war heckler repeatedly interrupted President Barack Obama in a major speech on reframing US counter-terrorism policy Thursday, prompting him to depart from his prepared remarks.

The president was interrupted for more than a minute by a heckler from the Code Pink movement, who berated him for not closing the Guantanamo Bay prison.

"The voice of that woman is worth paying attention to -- obviously I don't agree with much of what she said," Obama said, after repeatedly asking the woman to sit down.

"She wasn't listening to me, in what I said -- but these are tough issues and the suggestion that we can gloss over them is wrong," Obama said, in a speech dealing with US drone strikes and closing Guantanamo Bay.

An AFP photographer identified the protester as Medea Benjamin, leader of the Code Pink anti-war group, who frequently disrupts speeches by top US officials and congressional hearings.