Bahrain's largest opposition group dismissed Tuesday a government statement acknowledging "instances" of abuse, saying the repression of mainly Shiite anti-government protesters is "systematic."

Al-Wefaq said in a statement the Sunni-dominated government is trying to escape responsibility for "violations leading to numerous fatalities and hundreds of injuries on junior security personnel."

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday called on his former ally Syrian leader Bashar Assad to step down.

"Quit power before more blood is shed ... for the peace of your people, your region and your country," Erdogan said in parliament.

The opposition Syrian National Council said Tuesday it is organizing a conference with the Arab League to prepare for a "transitional period" after the fall of President Bashar Assad's regime.

Assad is under mounting pressure from Syria's neighbors to step down over his regime's eight-month crackdown on protests that the United Nations says has killed more than 3,500 people since mid-March.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal will meet in Cairo this week despite the unrest rocking Egypt, a senior Hamas official said on Tuesday.

The meeting between the exiled Hamas leader and Abbas, who heads the rival Fatah movement, will go ahead "as scheduled on Thursday," Hamas official Ismail Radwan told AFP.

Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that one of its citizens has been killed in the restive Syrian city of Homs, demanding an explanation from Damascus for what it called a "sinful attack."

In a statement issued by the kingdom's official SPA news agency, a Saudi embassy official in the Syrian capital said Hussein bin Bandar bin Khalaf al-Anzi died early Monday while visiting family in Homs.

Tunisia enters a new phase of democratic rule Tuesday following a power-sharing deal between the three main political parties sealed 10 months after a popular uprising ended years of dictatorship.

The North African nation will Tuesday inaugurate its elected constituent assembly, which is to confirm the appointment of Hamadi Jebali of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party as prime minister and two other key appointments.

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor arrived in Tripoli on Tuesday to meet Libyan authorities following the arrest of Moammar Gadhafi’s son Seif al-Islam, his office said.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo and deputy prosecutor Fatou Bensouda head a delegation whose aim is to coordinate their efforts after the arrest of Seif al-Islam and unconfirmed reports regarding the arrest of Abdullah al-Senussi.

Thousands of protesters swarmed Cairo's Tahrir Square on Tuesday to demand an end to military rule, heightening tension after days of deadly clashes that threaten to derail next week's legislative polls.

The ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) began crisis talks with a number of political forces in a bid to defuse the crisis, state media reported.

Egypt's military rulers have failed to live up to their promises and have even committed worse rights abuses than the regime of ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak, Amnesty International said on Tuesday.

The London-based watchdog made the criticism in a report that comes after Egyptian police and troops killed at least 24 people in three days at protests against military rule in Cairo's Tahrir Square and across the country.

One protester died of wounds sustained when security forces opened fire on protesters in the Shiite Qatif region of Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, medical officials said on Tuesday.

Ali al-Felfel was hit by a bullet in the chest Monday night and died in hospital later, they said.