NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Thursday called for a quick return to civilian government in Egypt.

"I am gravely concerned by the situation in Egypt and ... reports of fighting and deaths" given the country's "vital role" in the region, Rasmussen told a news conference.

A Libyan military helicopter crashed during an airshow in the eastern city of Benghazi on Thursday killing two crew members and wounding a third, an airforce official told Agence France Presse.

The accident occurred while a military parade was underway at the Benina airbase in Benghazi, Libya's second city and cradle of the 2011 uprising that toppled dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

French President Francois Hollande arrived Thursday in Tunisia, birthplace of the Arab Spring uprisings that is battling political instability and ruled by an Islamist-led government, for talks expected to be dominated by events rocking Egypt.

Presidential spokesman Romain Nadal said that during his visit Hollande was "naturally ready to discuss" the situation "in Egypt, Libya and Syria", other Arab countries swept by popular uprisings.

Qatar, a key political and financial backer of Egypt's deposed Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, congratulated his successor on Thursday while pro-government newspapers warned of possible future violence in the country.

"Qatar will continue to back Egypt in its leading role in the Arab and Muslim worlds," a foreign ministry spokesman said in remarks carried by the official QNA news agency.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday said civilian rule in Egypt "should be resumed as soon as possible,” and that the country's future leadership should reflect the Egyptian people's will.

"It is a volatile situation (and) it is not clear where we are heading," Ban told journalists in Copenhagen, adding that "inclusivity" was key to any solution of the Middle Eastern country's woes.

Syria's President Bashar Assad claimed in an interview published Thursday that countries conspiring against Syria have "used up all their tools" in their campaign to overthrow his regime.

In comments to the state-run Al-Thawra newspaper, Assad rejected the idea that what has been happening in Syria since more than two years is a revolution. Instead, he insisted it is a conspiracy by Western and some Arab states to destabilize his country.

Syria's embattled government on Thursday hailed the ouster of Egypt's president Mohammed Morsi by the army after massive street protests against him as a "great achievement".

"Syria's people and leadership and army express their deep appreciation for the national, populist movement in Egypt which has yielded a great achievement," Syrian state television said, citing an official source.

Turkey on Thursday said the military intervention that ousted Egypt's Islamist president Mohammed Morsi did not reflect the people's will and urged the country to "return to democracy.”

Turkey's Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) government -- which grappled with its own mass anti-government demonstrations last month -- had established friendly ties with Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood movement.

China said Thursday it supported the "choice of the Egyptian people" and called for dialogue after the army toppled democratically-elected Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, detaining him and his top aides.

But foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying sidestepped questions on whether her comments offered "hope" to the Egyptian leader overthrown after only a year in office.

Egypt's chief justice Adly Mansour was sworn in as the country's interim president on Thursday, a day after the military ousted and detained Mohammed Morsi following days of massive protests.

"I swear to preserve the system of the republic, and respect the constitution and law, and guard the people's interests," Mansour said as he took the oath of office at a ceremony in the Supreme Constitutional Court.