Syria's foreign minister, a close confidant of President Bashar Assad and a staunch defender of the government, underwent a successful heart operation Friday, state media said.
Walid al-Moallem, a veteran diplomat in his 70s who is known for his hard-line stance against the opposition, was brought to the American University of Beirut Medical Center in the Lebanese capital early Friday. It is not clear whether the overweight al-Moallem has had heart problems in the past. (AP)