Al-Arabia – Bulgaria said Wednesday that an aircraft taking its prime minister and former king to Saudi Arabia was denied permission by Iran to enter its airspace, forcing them to fly via Iraq.

Al-Arabia – An analyst commenting on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recent statements – comparing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei to Hitler – acknowledged there is a historical and sectarian conflict between Iran and the Gulf countries but said the comparison with Hitler may not apply. I think what the crown prince meant is that Khamenei is a leader …

VOA — A Turkish-Iranian gold trader testified at a New York trial Wednesday that he paid over $50 million in bribes to Turkey’s economy minister in 2012 to overcome a banker’s fears he was too well-known in Turkey to launder Iranian money in violation of U.S. sanctions. Reza Zarrab calmly described his arrangement with one of Turkey’s most important public officials …

CHRI – Websites affiliated with former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were blocked in Iran and the country’s most widely used state-approved video-sharing site barred users from accessing Ahmadinejad-related content after the politician criticized state officials in a recent speech. The Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has also learned that Parsijoo, a domestically created Iranian search engine, is redirecting users …

Al-Monitor – Saudi Arabia attracted significant media attention when it announced that it would finally allow women to drive as of June 2018. It was also announced later that women will be allowed into some of the country’s sports stadiums next year. Many have since drawn comparisons between Saudi Arabia and Iran, where women have long been allowed to drive …

Al-Monitor – Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says Tehran is seeking to solve regional problems through negotiation and not confrontation. In a live interview with Iran’s state TV on Nov. 28, besides domestic issues, Rouhani addressed the crises in the region and other foreign policy matters. In a reference to Tehran-Riyadh ties, Rouhani said, “We have improved relations with [most] countries …

Al-Monitor – The international governing body of soccer, FIFA, does not grant any individual or legal entity the right to control more than one member club at the same time. However, this rule has often been ignored in Iran, where two of the capital’s most prominent soccer clubs, Esteghlal and Persepolis, are owned by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and …

ABC – In a square in a poor eastern Tehran neighborhood known for its drug addicts and dealers, psychologist Atefeh Azimi draws another drop of blood from a worried passer-by’s finger. She works on a nearby bench, where a sign next to her in English and in Farsi urges the public to receive free voluntary counseling and HIV testing. But …

PayvandNews – Deputy Head of Iran’s Carpet Center for Economic Affairs Mohammad Mehdi Farshchi said Iran exported hand-woven carpets worth $180 million over the first seven months of the current Iranian calendar year (began March 20).  Iran exported $290 million hand-woven carpet in 2016, he said, adding the figure rose to $359 million in 2016, rising by 3 percent in …

RFL/RE – Iranian President Hassan Rohani has accused Saudi Arabia of trying to distract attention from Riyadh’s “failures” at home and abroad by vilifying Iran as the alleged culprit behind conflicts in the Middle East. “Saudi Arabia seeks to solve two problems through enmity with Iran. First, it wants to cover up its failures in the region…and second, its domestic …