CAN'T KEEP A BAD MAN DOWN

Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri was a member of Saddam Hussein's inner circle. On this, everyone is in agreement. But only on this.

Is al-Douri alive? Dead? Captured? On the lam?

The answer: Yes.

In December 2003 we were pretty certain that al-Douri was dead:

US forces may have killed or captured Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, the most wanted man in Iraq after Saddam Hussein and believed to be a mastermind of the guerilla resistance, Iraq Governing Council sources said.

In November 2005 we were damned sure that al-Douri was dead:

Former officials of the Baath Party confirmed Saturday on their Web site the death of Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, the last of Saddam Hussein's inner circle still at large in Iraq and a man long sought by the American military command as the effective leader of the Baathist insurgent underground here.

Tuesday, we knew for a fact that al-Douri was captured:

Director of the bureau of the vice president of the ousted regime, Izzat Al-Douri, has been detained, the interior ministry announced on Tuesday.

Wednesday, al-Douri was reportedly not captured. The King of Clubs remains on the lam.