KOENIG

EXCLUSIVE – Iran is likely at "an inflection point," and the recent attacks on tankers and the downing of a U.S. surveillance drone appear to be part of an effort to change "the status quo," the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) told Fox News exclusively.

"I'd say that they're probably at an inflection point right now," the director, Lt. Gen. Robert Ashley Jr., explained in his first national TV interview as the leader of the nearly 17-thousand strong agency. Director Ashley said, based on their activity over the last several years, the Iranians would probably say they were in a "favorable" position with their influence over the Iraqi government and the likelihood their longtime regional ally -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- will remain in power.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged that Israel will listen “fairly and with openness” to the US peace proposals, and bewailed that the Palestinians are not willing to do the same, noting that “before they even heard the plan [they] rejected it outright.”

Netanyahu’s comments on Sunday came as he toured the Jordan Valley with US National Security Advisor John Bolton, two days before the opening of the “Peace to Prosperity” workshop in Bahrain, which the US administration organized to gain backing for the economic component of their peace blueprint.

The Palestinian Authority is boycotting the workshop, tagging the plan a “sell out,” which would see up to $50 billion invested in the region over the next decade, with some $28 billion earmarked for the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. military cyber forces launched a strike against Iranian military computer systems on Thursday as President Donald Trump backed away from plans for a more conventional military strike in response to Iran’s downing of a U.S. surveillance drone, U.S. officials said Saturday.

Two officials told The Associated Press that the strikes were conducted with approval from Trump. A third official confirmed the broad outlines of the strike. All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the operation.

The cyberattacks — a contingency plan developed over weeks amid escalating tensions — disabled Iranian computer systems that controlled its rocket and missile launchers, the officials said. Two of the officials said the attacks, which specifically targeted Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps computer system, were provided as options after Iranian forces blew up two oil tankers earlier this month.

WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States would impose “major” new sanctions on Iran in two days — a move sure to exacerbate tensions with the Islamic republic inflamed by the downing of a US spy plane.

Trump tamped down the threat of military action on Friday, when he called off retaliatory strikes at the last-minute because the response was not “proportionate” to the drone’s destruction over the Strait of Hormuz.

“We are putting major additional Sanctions on Iran on Monday,” Trump tweeted.

“I look forward to the day that Sanctions come off Iran, and they become a productive and prosperous nation again – The sooner the better!”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Iran has increased its offensive cyberattacks against the US government and critical infrastructure as tensions have grown between the two nations, cybersecurity firms say.

In recent weeks, hackers believed to be working for the Iranian government have targeted US government agencies, as well as sectors of the economy, including oil and gas, sending waves of spear-phishing emails, according to representatives of cybersecurity companies CrowdStrike and FireEye, which regularly track such activity.

It was not known if any of the hackers managed to gain access to the targeted networks with the emails, which typically mimic legitimate emails but contain malicious software.

The U.S. military confirmed on Thursday that one of its drones was shot down and said the incident took place in international airspace, challenging Iran's account that the U.S. aircraft had been flying over Iranian territory.

U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that the drone was unarmed and clearly in international waters and that it could have been shot down by someone who was "loose and stupid." Asked how the U.S. will respond, Trump said to reporters, "You'll find out." 

"I think probably Iran made a mistake - I would imagine it was a general or somebody that made a mistake in shooting that drone down," Trump said during an appearance with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. 

Moscow will look out for Iran’s interests in next week’s tripartite meeting of top security officials from Russia, Israel and the United States in Jerusalem, President Vladimir Putin’s national security adviser said Thursday, amid growing regional tensions after Iran shot down an American drone over the Strait of Hormuz.

“Iran is in Syria at the invitation of the legitimate government and is actively involved in fighting terrorism. Therefore, of course, we will have to take into account the interests of Iran,” Nikolay Patrushev said.

Early next week, Israel’s National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat will host Patrushev and their American counterpart, John Bolton, in Jerusalem for an unprecedented meeting to discuss various regional issues. Iran’s efforts to entrench itself militarily in Syria, the recent attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf — for which Washington blames Tehran, and the unraveling nuclear deal with Iran are expected to top the agenda of the meeting.

A U.S. Navy high-altitude drone was shot down Thursday by an Iranian surface-to-air missile over the Strait of Hormuz amid heightened tensions in the region after last week’sattacks on two oil tankers, according to military officials.

U.S. Central Command said in a statement that a U.S. Navy Broad Area Maritime Surveillance ISR aircraft, known as a BAMS-D, was shot down by an Iranian surface-to-air missile system while operating in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz at approximately 7:35 p.m. ET on Wednesday.

Israel has tremendous destructive capabilities, and its enemies should not test it, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday after viewing a large IDF exercise in the north.

“I am very impressed by the improvement in the [IDF’s] readiness, in the spirit of the fighters and the commanders, and especially in the IDF’s destructive power,” said Netanyahu, who is also the country’s defense minister. He viewed the mutli-pronged exercise with Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, and spoke with IDF officers and soldiers participating in the drill.

“I hear our neighbors from the north, south and east threatening to destroy us,” he said. “I say to our enemies: The IDF has a very large power of annihilation. Do not try us.”     

The United States will reportedly sell Israel aerial refueling planes, marking the first time it has agreed to do so.

According to a Channel 12 news report Tuesday, Israel is looking to purchase eight Boeing KC-46 Pegasus aircraft, which the US Air Force first received earlier this year.

The planes would replace the Israeli Air Force’s current fleet of aging refueling planes, which includes KC-130 Hercules and converted Boeing 707s.

For three days in a row, rockets have been fired at areas where US forces are present and near foreign oil workers in Iraq. They come as US-Iran tensions rise and may pose a serious threat to US policy in Iraq as well as the functioning of oil facilities if they increase.

A rocket struck near an area used by ExxonMobile, wounding three people on Wednesday in southern Iraq. It is one of at least three attacks over the last week, one of which targeted an area near US forces in Mosul on Tuesday, and another struck Camp Taji – where US forces are based – on Monday. The US-led anti-ISIS coalition, which is based in Taji and conducts training of Iraqi forces, says that Iraqi security forces are investigating the incident.

The attacks paint a disturbing picture of what may be happening in Iraq. On May 7, amid rising US-Iran tensions, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Iraq and discussed Iranian threats with officials. On May 19, a rocket landed near the US embassy in Baghdad. The US has blamed Iran and its proxies for that attack. Now the latest round of attacks – apparently increasing every day – include information that Iraqi authorities may have received a “tip-off” about a threat to the US consulate in Basra. That consulate was closed last year after a rocket attack against it.

The Israeli Air Force is holding a large-scale multi-day exercise simulating combat action on multiple fronts, the army said Tuesday, with the air force’s F-35s taking part for the first time.

The drill, which began Sunday and ends Wednesday, involves fighter jets, helicopters, cargo planes, drones, air defense units and ground support forces. It simulates simultaneous fighting in the Gaza Strip, Syria and Lebanon.

It includes scenarios involving an enemy armed with advanced technology, such as the Russian S-300 and S-400 missile defense systems; a home front under massive missile attacks; and challenges such as damaged runways and disabled IAF communications centers.