It became extinct in Syria in the mid-20th century and was also exterminated in Jordan and Israel. Currently, it lives in the South Caucasus: in northern Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Abkhazia, as well as in the countries of the Middle East: Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Turkey, and Turkmenistan.
In Syria, bear tracks were recorded in the snow in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains in 2004 - the first time this had happened in almost fifty years. In 2011, bear tracks were again recorded in this area. In 2017, a female with cubs was seen in Lebanon for the first time in 60 years.
