“Is that him?” “Yep.” “You sure?” “Yep.” “Cook him!”

Esmaeil Khatib somehow survived the devastating strike on Iran’s leadership compound during the first day of “Operation Epic Fury.” He wasn’t so lucky on Wednesday.

“Today, Khatib met the fate of his comrades,” an Israeli intelligence official told right-wing American media, in characteristically snide remarks. Israel Katz later confirmed Khatib’s “elimination.”

Khatib was a somebody, but just barely, which is to say we’re scraping the barrel now when it comes to targets. Glaring from beneath grey eyebrows and a black turban, Khatib served as intelligence minister. He was close to Ali Khamenei. Now he is again.

A senior official best known for his role in the regime’s crackdown on the Mahsa Amini demonstrators, Khatib was sanctioned in 2022 by Janet Yellen for masterminding “cyber espionage and ransomware attacks.”

Video from the site of Khatib’s demise showed twisted metal, charred concrete and flames dancing up from a smoking crater.

Khatib’s assassination came just a day after Israel killed Iran’s security chief and shadow president, Ali Larijani, along with the head of the Basij.

The regime staged a rally in Tehran for Larijani’s public funeral. He was paraded around in a flag-draped box, flanked by ostensible mourners burning American flags and shouting “Death to Israel!”

Iran retaliated for Larijani’s death with a volley of missiles and drones aimed at the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The regime also hit Tel Aviv with cluster warheads, killing two and halting metro service.

Later, Iranian state media said the South Pars gas field was on fire after it was hit by projectiles in an apparent attack. Forget the regime’s foreign bank accounts, that’s an offshore deposit Iran really can’t afford to lose.

You’d think Trump would be cautious about strikes with the potential to push up natural gas prices even further given Europe’s energy security’s at stake. But then again, Trump has no qualms about jeopardizing the European economy.

The IRGC quickly issued a warning to civilians in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, telling them to avoid oil and gas infrastructure, which would be targeted imminently.

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s a total war zone. Israel’s bombing not only Beirut but any number of other locales, while IDF troops push further into the country’s south, expanding a ground operation which it’s entirely fair to call an invasion.

Asked on Tuesday for a timeline on winding down America’s direct involvement in this melee, Trump said, “We’re not ready to leave yet. But we’ll be leaving pretty much in the near future.”