Two Russian warships have made a rare call at Russia's controversial Mediterranean naval base in Syria to resupply and refuel, reports said on Wednesday.

The landing ships Novocherkassk and Saratov docked in the port of Tartus for several hours but their crews did not go ashore, the Interfax and ITAR-TASS news agencies reported.

The United Nations has had to cut food rations for hundreds of thousands of people in conflict-stricken Syria because of cash shortages, officials said Tuesday.

The World Food Program would not give a size for the cuts but said more are possible if it does not get cash. It estimates it needs $20 million to keep operations going in December.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday Israel is closely tracking developments relating to chemical weapons in Syria, whose regime has been warned against using them in the country's uprising.

"Along with the international community, we are closely following developments in Syria related to its chemical weapons stockpiles," Netanyahu said in a statement from his office.

NATO on Tuesday agreed to deploy Patriot missiles along the border of member state Turkey as requested by Ankara to help it defend its territory against threats from Syria.

"NATO has agreed to augment Turkey's air defense capabilities in order to defend the population and territory of Turkey and to contribute to the de-escalation of the crisis along the alliance's border," a statement said.

Al-Mustaqbal MP Qqab Saqr will hold a press conference on Thursday to respond to criticisms about his alleged involvement in arming the Free Syrian Army against President Bashar Assad's forces in the neighboring country.

Saqr will also be revealing the engagement of other Lebanese parties in Syria's events, Future TV reported on Tuesday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned Tuesday that deploying Patriot missiles along Turkey's border with Syria risked pouring more arms into the region, and dismissed fears of Damascus using chemical weapons.

Russia recognized Turkey's right to ask for help from its NATO allies, Lavrov said, but added: "We are concerned that the conflict is being increasingly militarized."

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun rejected on Tuesday calls for a change in government and slammed the recent audio recordings revealing an arms deal being made between Mustaqbal MP Oqab Saqr and a member of the Syrian opposition.

He said after the Change and Reform bloc's weekly meeting: “Saqr must be put on trial.”

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri held talks on Tuesday with a delegation from the Syrian National Coalition, headed by Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib.

Hariri stressed to the Syrian opposition head: “We will not back down from supporting the Syrian revolution no matter how great the challenges.”

The influence of hardline Islamists is increasingly being seen on Syria's battlefields, with even the more secular rebel fighters starting to sport jihadist-style beards, headbands and clothes.

The trend is confusing the West and complicating the dispatch of aid, especially weapons, to the insurgents, experts say.

The names of five Lebanese Islamists killed in the Tall Kalakh ambush in Syria were revealed on Tuesday, as a result of phone calls by Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour with relevant parties.

Reports have said that the Syrian Foreign Ministry expressed its willingness to hand over the bodies of the Lebanese victims for “humanitarian reasons”.