The BBC reported that the Syrian armed forces mobilized aircraft to join an attack against insurgents in Idlib province in northwest Syria. 25 groups of rebel fighters had previously launched an attack on two military bases in Idlib, which killed 10 government soldiers and 5 rebel fighters. These developments have redoubled concerns about the danger UN inspectors may face in their efforts to destroy Syria's chemical weapons arsenal.

Tensions continue in Syria. Photo:Reuters

US State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the US would be more open to Iran taking part in a peace conference on Syria if Iran publicly backed a transitional government in Syria. On the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bali, Indonesia, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said they are preparing for an international peace conference on Syria in mid-November in Geneva, Switzerland.