Syria has reached a "point of no return" in the regime's crackdown on opposition demonstrators, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Wednesday during his state visit to Britain.

"Unfortunately Syria has come to a point of no return," Gul said in a speech, adding that the whole region could be dragged into "turmoil and bloodshed" by the crisis.

The U.N. human rights chief called Wednesday for an independent probe into the killing of protesters by Egypt's military and security forces.

"I urge the Egyptian authorities to end the clearly excessive use of force against protesters in Tahrir Square and elsewhere in the country, including the apparent improper use of tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition," said Navi Pillay, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Iran has dismissed a U.S. news report implicating it in a chemical weapons cache uncovered in Libya, saying it was a champion in fighting to eradicate such arms.

"About the arms delivery to the regime of (toppled Libyan leader Moammar) Gadhafi... The West would do better to look to itself, because Iran has always been at the forefront in the fight against chemical weapons," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said, according to Iranian media Wednesday.

Several thousand Egyptians rallied in Tahrir Square on Wednesday demanding an end to military rule, despite a promise by the country's interim leader to transfer power to an elected president by mid-2012.

Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who served as minister under Hosni Mubarak but took power when the ex-president was ousted in February, pledged in a rare televised address Tuesday to hold a presidential election by the end of June.

China said Wednesday a U.N. human rights resolution condemning Syria's deadly eight-month crackdown on anti-government protestors was "counterproductive".

China was among 41 nations to abstain from voting on the resolution, which strongly condemns "continued grave and systematic human rights violations" by Syria that the United Nations estimates has left more than 3,500 dead.

Turkey has bombed the Sulaimaniyah and Arbil provinces of Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdish region, wounding one civilian, Kurdish officials said on Wednesday.

"The Turkish aerial bombardment was renewed on Tuesday night and the civilian Ismail Baz Hamed, 20, was wounded during this bombing," said Hassan Abdullah, the mayor of the Qalat Dizah area in Sulaimaniyah.

Forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh clashed Wednesday with dissident tribesmen in the Yemeni capital, residents said, while the veteran leader was in Riyadh to sign a power transfer deal.

The clashes broke out between gunmen loyal to dissident tribal chief Sheikh Sadiq al-Ahmar and pro-Saleh troops in al-Hasaba district, while explosions were heard in the nearby neighborhood of Sufan, residents there said.

Iranian lawmakers voted Wednesday to consider expelling Britain's ambassador in retaliation for newly imposed Western sanctions, said the parliamentary website.

The parliament introduced an emergency bill to be voted on Sunday that would see diplomatic relations downgraded to the more junior level of charge d'affaires if passed, the website reported.

Turkey has bombed the Sulaimaniyah and Arbil provinces of Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdish region, wounding one civilian, Kurdish officials said on Wednesday.

"The Turkish aerial bombardment was renewed on Tuesday night and the civilian Ismail Baz Hamed, 20, was wounded during this bombing," said Hassan Abdullah, the mayor of the Qalat Dizah area in Sulaimaniyah.

Days of protest in Egypt, ahead of elections expected to produce big wins for the Muslim Brotherhood, have stirred fears in Israel about bilateral ties and the future of the countries' peace treaty.

Israel had largely avoided comment on the unrest, which has seen dozens of Egyptians killed, but with protesters showing no signs of calling off their demonstrations, officials here have started to show concern.