Iran

Ever since economic sanctions against Iran were officially lifted in mid-January, you could see this mood of overriding joy among the business community.

Dozens of al-Qaeda militants reclaimed the town of Azzan in Yemen's Shabwa province on Feb. 1, residents said, exploiting a security vacuum in the country's south as a civil war rages. 

The Turkish Contractors' Association (TMB) has said it expects a further slowdown in the construction business due to a rise in geopolitical risks, including deteriorating ties with Russia and economic problems in major Turkish markets that are dependent on oil revenue.

Turkey's exports declined 14.4 percent to $9.2 billion in January compared to the same month of 2015, according to data from the Exporters' Assembly of Turkey (T?M). 

Turkish companies who have deeply-rooted relations in Iran have great potential because it is not so easy to do business with the traditional structure there but Europeans will be a strong rival in this market as they are advantegous financially, according the head of the Turkish-Iranian business councilAs Iran slowly opens up to trade following the lifting of international sanctions, Turkey wi

Iran expects to finalize within days a deal to buy up to 40 planes from ATR, the European manufacturer of turboprop aircraft, a deputy transport minister said on Jan. 30.

"We discussed the deals in Italy and France and ATR officials are expected in Tehran in the coming days to complete the agreement," Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan said.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards has recruited thousands of Afghans, some by coercion, to fight in Syria's war alongside forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Human Rights Watch said on Jan. 29.

The United States and Britain have monitored secret sorties and communications by Israel's air force in a hacking operation dating back to 1998, according to documents attributed to leaks by former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden.

Russian energy giant Gazprom has canceled a discount on natural gas for the Turkish private sector and companies have begun to be notified, industry sources told Reuters on Jan. 29. 

The discount on gas for the Turkish private sector has been in place since Jan. 1, 2015.

It is not clear what the new prices will be, two sources told Reuters. 

French carmaker Peugeot will return to Iran in a partnership deal with a local manufacturer worth 400 million euros ($436 million), according to an agreement signed on Jan. 28 during Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s visit to France