Omar's our man

Although I remain inexpert on Egypt, I can't help but remember the words "rendition" and "Egypt" being used in the same sentence quite a lot over the past decade. I don't know if this has anything to do with the U.S. government's tepid non-opposition to Egyptian regime change: it may just be a coincidence. But then along comes Omar Sulemein, Mubarek's first-ever deputy and apparent successor: that name rang a bell and I did a quick google. Yep, this is the man we want for Eqypt:

Ron Suskind, author of the book The One Percent Doctrine, called Suleiman the "hit man" for the Mubarak regime. He told ABC News that when the CIA asked Suleiman for a DNA sample from a relative of Al Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Suleiman offered the man's whole arm instead.

"He's a charitable man, friendly," said Suskind. "He tortures only people that he doesn't know."

I may not know a lot about Egypt, but I'm learning more, and I've read Suskind and seen him speak. I've no reason to doubt him.

Look's like the west is sticking to the same old game-plan. It's worked so well so far.

Late update: Meanwhile, Cheney weighs in, predictably, with kind words for Mubarak.