Turkey could increase its oil imports from neighboring Iran once the sanctions are lifted as part of a landmark deal on Tehran's nuclear program, the energy minister said on Monday.

The amount of crude oil Turkey buys from Iran, one of its leading suppliers along with Russia, could increase to 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 105,000, Taner Yildiz said.

France on Monday offered weapons, training and intelligence cooperation to help Iraq combat worsening violence amid fears the country is on the verge of returning to all-out sectarian bloodshed.

The latest pledge comes after Baghdad appealed for international help in dealing with the protracted surge in militancy, with Iraq having already turned to Washington for help, while Turkey also offered assistance.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati is expected to kick off a tour to Arab and European countries to urge them to commit to their financial pledges to share the burden of the displaced Syrians, who have put a severe strain on Lebanon's economy.

Miqati, according to An Nahar newspaper published on Monday, will make Qatar his first stop of the tour, which will include Kuwait also.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday his government would never respect military-installed rulers, in remarks made after Egypt's expulsion of Ankara's ambassador.

"I will never respect those who come to power after coups," Erdogan told reporters.

Egypt announced Saturday it was expelling Turkey's ambassador, the latest souring of diplomatic ties that began when the Egyptian army ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi from power in July.

Ankara said it would reciprocate and hours later, it declared Egypt's ambassador "persona non grata" and downgraded diplomatic relations to the level of charge d'affaires.

Turkish police and protesters clashed on Thursday at the opening of the trial of two people charged with the death of a young man during anti-government street demonstrations this year.

The trouble occurred as a crowd of about 500 people gathered to seek justice for the 19-year-old victim tried to storm the heavily-protected courthouse in Istanbul, an AFP photographer said.

Turkish police arrested a "mentally unstable" man carrying a fake bomb outside the office of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday, officials said, causing a security scare in the capital.

Local television stations had initially reported that police had shot and wounded the suspect but officials and witnesses later said they wrestled him to the ground and only fired shots in the air.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati said on Thursday that Lebanese authorities have beefed up security near foreign diplomatic missions, two days after suicide bombers struck the Iranian embassy.

In remarks to the Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency, Miqati said: “We have taken all measures to protect diplomatic missions in Lebanon.”

A senior member of Turkey's ruling party stirred up a new furor on Thursday over the imposition of Islamic values in the country, saying it was a "big mistake" to allow boys and girls to study together.

The comments by deputy parliament speaker Sadik Yakut followed a storm of controversy over a push by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier this month to do away with mixed-sex dorms at universities.

Turkey and Greece were locked Wednesday in a war of words over the possible conversion of Hagia Sophia, one of Istanbul's most stunning landmarks, into a mosque.

The feud over the 1,476-year-old World Heritage site is the latest to erupt between the two neighbors over religion.