Syrian rebels took control of a military base Tuesday after a bloody two-day battle. Thirty-five Syrian soldiers were killed in the clash.

The Sheik Suleiman military base was the second major base captured in the north by the rebels, who also are making inroads farther south toward the capital Damascus.

Meanwhile, the Syrian government may be backing away from the possibility of using chemical weapons against rebel forces.

Last week U.S. officials found evidence the President Bashar Assad's regime had begun preparing such weapons to use in the Syrian civil war.

Now U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said they have slowed those preps.

The development comes after multiples statements from Western countries warned Syrian forces about using chemical weapons against their own people.