Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem dies at the age of 79. He died on Monday local time.

Walid was known as a member of the cabinet of Bashar al-Assad’s government.

Walid has been Syria’s foreign minister since 2006, the AFP news agency reported. Walid has been in office for a decade, despite a series of conflicts and cabinet reshuffles.

He started his career as a diplomat in 1968. He also served as deputy prime minister in 2012, a year after the start of the bloody conflict in Syria.

The Syrian government has not commented on Foreign Minister’s Walid al-Moallem dies. However, his health was deteriorating for some time.

He was last seen in public at a refugee return event in Damascus last week. He looked quite weak at the time and was seen walking with the help of two people at the ceremony.

In August 2011, Walid Muallem became one of the targets of US sanctions. The anti-government movement in Syria had intensified a few days ago. At the time, the Syrian government was cracking down on protesters.

During his 50 years as Foreign Minister for Syria, Walid Muallem has served in countries such as Tanzania, Saudi Arabia, Spain and the United Kingdom.

He was appointed ambassador to Romania in 1975, five years after President Bashar al-Assad’s father came to power. Walid served as Syria’s ambassador to Washington in the 1990s. He also led peace talks with Israel at the time.