Syria's top diplomat Moalem, soft-spoken defender of Assad, dies at 79

FILE PHOTO: Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem attends a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, April 13, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

AMMAN (Reuters) - ‮Syria's‬ long-time foreign minister Walid al-Moalem, an unyielding defender of Syrian President Bashar al Assad's bloody crackdown on peaceful protesters that sparked a decade old conflict, died on Monday, the government said.

There were no details on the cause of death, but the 79-year old had been in poor health with heart problems. A source close to the government said it was expected his deputy, veteran diplomat Faisal Mekdad, would replace him as foreign minister.