Turkey's foreign minister on Monday denounced the killing of 35 activists in Egypt who demonstrated against last week's military coup that unseated president Mohammed Morsi.

"I strongly condemn the massacre during the morning prayers on behalf of the fundamental values of humanity that we have defended," Ahmet Davutoglu wrote in a message on Twitter.

Turkish riot police fired tear gas and water cannon Saturday to disperse some 3,000 demonstrators who tried to enter flashpoint protest spot Taksim Square in Istanbul.

The group had gathered on the Istiklal Avenue pedestrian way that leads to the square, the site of nearly three weeks of protests against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted government that left four people dead and some 8,000 injured.

Turkey's prime minister on Friday condemned the military intervention that toppled Egypt's Islamist president Mohamed Morsi as an enemy of democracy, and chastised the West for failing to brand the ouster a coup.

Referring to his country's history of coups, Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned that such military uprisings come at a heavy price and must not be tolerated.

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.

A court in Turkey has scrapped a controversial plan to redevelop Istanbul's Gezi Park that sparked protests which snowballed into deadly nationwide unrest, media reported on Wednesday.

The administrative court justified its ruling, made last month but only revealed by Turkish media on Wednesday, by saying that the "local population" had not been sufficiently consulted about the redevelopment project.

Syria's main political opposition will attempt to nominate a new leader to unify a fractured coalition when members reconvene in Istanbul on Thursday, an official said.

Frontrunners include the secretary general of the Syrian National Coalition Mustafa al-Sabbagh, and Ahmad Assi Jarba, representing the faction of veteran secular dissident Michel Kilo.

Turkey on Wednesday summoned the U.S. embassy's number two diplomat over allegations that Washington spied on a number of embassies and missions including Turkey's, the foreign ministry said.

Turkey demanded an "explanation" from U.S. charge d'affaires Jess Baily, who was invited to the foreign ministry in the American ambassador's absence, the ministry said in a statement.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday vowed to continue the fragile peace process between the government and the country's Kurdish minority which looked threatened by a weekend of rallies sparked by the death of a young protester.

"This problem didn't start yesterday and it will need a lot of work and patience," he said at a weekly meeting of his deputies from the Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Turkey, Jordan and Iraq must fully reopen their border crossings to allow thousands of Syrians fleeing their country's war to seek refuge, Human Rights Watch said on Monday.

"Iraqi, Jordanian, and Turkish border guards are pushing back tens of thousands of people trying to flee Syria," the international rights group said, adding that the lives of those trying to flee were in danger.

Turkish riot police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse thousands of demonstrators who gathered in the Kurdish-majority southeast on Sunday to press the Turkish government to advance the peace process.

Some 8,000 demonstrators were clustered in front of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) building in Diyarbakir city for the "Government, take a step" rally.