4.04pm BST

Here's a summary of the main events today:

Syria

• The rebel stronghold of Homs is on the brink of falling to the Syrian army, according to opposition activists and residents. A resident told the Guardian that the army already controlled 75% of the city and was advancing swiftly. He said: "Homs might fall to the Syrian army at any moment. The army are taking street after street, progressing towards us little by little."

• The Free Syrian Army commander in charge of defending Homs has made an appeal for weapons to help repel the government offensive. Colonel Qassim Saadeddine told the Guardian: "We only have light weapons. We desperately need heavy weapons to stop them."

• UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon said he was "deeply concerned" about the continued flow of arms to both the Syrian government and opposition forces. He also described as "extremely dangerous" the escalating conflict along the Syrian-Turkish border and the impact of the crisis on Lebanon.

• The opposition Syrian National Council is set to discuss whether to back Turkey's idea of a transition government led by Syria's most senior Sunni politician - vice-president Farouq al-Sharaa. The opposition appears to be softening its stance on former regime members playing a role in a future government. It said it did not want to repeat the mistakes of de-Ba'athification in Iraq.

• Mitt Romney is set to call for an escalation of the conflict by arming the rebels with the heavy weapons. In a foreign policy speech to be delivered later, he will say: "I will work with our partners to identify and organise those members of the opposition who share our values and ensure they obtain the arms they need to defeat Assad's tanks, helicopters and fighter jets." The Obama administration has warned Qatar and Saudi Arabia not to provide heavy weapons to the rebels in case they fall into the wrong hands, according to the New York Times.

• Qatar has urged a Syrian rebel group not to carry out a threat to kill 48 Iranians seized two months ago near Damascus. Prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jasim al-Thani made the appeal following a request from Iran to secure the release of the captives. "We hope that the matter is addressed wisely and through dialogue rather than killing hostages", he said.

• Hezbollah is covertly providing men and support to the Assad government and currently has about 1,500 members inside Syria, a former member of Syria's air force intelligence branch told the Times. “There are about 1,500 Hezbollah and 1,500 Iranians in Syria right now,” the officer, who defected in August, claimed.

Libya

• Libya's parliament has sacked its prime minister-elect, Mustafa Abushagur, leaving the government in disarray three months after the July elections. Abushagur's dismissal, with 125 of the 200 MPs rejecting him, underlines the problem of a congress where regionally elected members make up a majority, and where the main parties - the pro-business National Forces Alliance and the Muslim Brotherhood's Justice and Construction party - have both failed to form working majorities.

Kuwait

• In the latest bid to end a political standoff the emir has dissolved parliament, three months after it was reinstated by the constitutional court, al-Jazeera reports. The dissolution of the assembly has been a main demand of the opposition and the action paves the way for snap polls.