Syrian security forces opened fire on protesters on Tuesday, killing four people, even as President Bashar al-Assad ordered a general amnesty, activists said.

"Two civilians were killed in Homs and six wounded when security forces opened fire on demonstrators calling for freedom," an activist in the central city said.

France stepped up pressure Monday on the United Nations to speak out against Syria's deadly crackdown on protests, but Russia again said it opposed "interference" in the country's internal affairs.

"The U.N. Security Council cannot remain silent for much longer," French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said during a joint press conference in Paris with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Gunshots and explosions were heard Tuesday from the Syrian side of Turkey's border with the unrest-hit Arab country, where thousands of fleeing people have massed, an Agence France Presse reporter said.

The shooting appeared to come from a hill overlooking the demarcation line at the frontier, about a kilometer from the Turkish border village of Guvecci, the reporter said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said Tuesday after talks with Syrian authorities that it has been granted access to areas and people affected by the unrest in the Middle Eastern country.

"The Syrian officials were receptive, and agreed to give the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent wider access to areas of unrest," said ICRC president Jakob Kellenberger.

A major Libyan civil society conference set to be held in Rome this weekend and planned to include tribal representatives has been delayed indefinitely, the Italian foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

"The dates are still being defined. It won't be this weekend," a ministry spokesman told Agence France Presse. The spokesman said the meeting organized by opponents to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi plans to represent "all of Libyan society."

Jordan's Information Minister Taher Adwan said on Tuesday he has resigned because of laws he deemed "restrictive for freedom of expression."

"I submitted my resignation today to Prime Minister Maaruf Bakhit in protest at a government decision" to debate new press and publication laws in parliament that he opposed, Adwan told Agence France Presse.

Israel and Turkey have been holding secret talks at several levels to end their diplomatic crisis, Haaretz newspaper reported on Tuesday, quoting a senior Israeli official.

The report, for which there was no confirmation, said an official representing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Feridun Sinirlioglu, undersecretary at the Turkish foreign ministry, were involved in the discussions.

Battles raged Tuesday between Yemen's army and suspected al-Qaida militants for control of the southern city of Zinjibar, a military official said, as the toll of soldiers killed passed the 100 mark.

"We are engaged in fierce battles with terrorist elements from al-Qaida, leading to heavy losses on their part during the past three days," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

President Bashar Assad on Tuesday ordered a new general amnesty, a day after an offer of "national dialogue" to end Syria's deadly unrest and as a huge crowd rallied in Damascus in his support.

"President Assad has issued a decree granting a general amnesty for crimes committed before the date of June 20, 2011," state news agency SANA announced without giving details.

Tens of thousands of people rallied Tuesday in central Damascus in support of President Bashar Assad, a day after he offered a national dialogue to end Syria's political crisis, an Agence France Presse correspondent said.

Omeyyades Square was turned into a sea of pro-Assad demonstrators, waving Syrian flags and the president's portrait, chanting, "We will sacrifice ourselves for you, Bashar!"