Syrian President Bashar Assad has appointed General Ali Abdullah Ayyoub as defense minister, Mohammed Mazen Ali Yousef as industry minister and Imad Abullah Sarah as information minister, state news agency SANA reported on Tuesday. This is the latest cabinet reshuffle in Syria, where the lingering war on terrorism entered its seventh year. Little has been disclosed about the appointees, though it is known that General Ayyoub is a career soldier who completed a senior officer course at the Moscow-based Frunze Military Academy back in 1986, according to SANA. Until his appointment as Defense Minister, he served as chief of the Syrian military's general staff.