Secretary-General Appoints Major General Md Fakhrul Ahsan of Bangladesh Force Commander, United Nations Mission for Referendum in Western Sahara
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of Major General Md Fakhrul Ahsan of Bangladesh as Force Commander of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
Major General Ahsan succeeds Major General Zia Ur Rehman of Pakistan who completed his assignment at the end of March 2022. The Secretary-General is grateful to Major General Ur Rehman for his exemplary service and leadership of MINURSO.
Major General Ahsan has over 34 years of national and international military leadership experience with the Bangladeshi Army. He served as General Officer Commanding, of the 10th Infantry Division and as Area Commander of the Cox’s Bazar Area, as Commandant of the Bangladesh Military Academy, and as Brigade Commander in the 16th and 96th Infantry Brigades. He was also the Director of the Military Intelligence Directorate at the Bangladesh Army Headquarters and as Assistant Defence Attaché at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi. Major General Ahsan has previously served in two peacekeeping missions — the United Nations Operation in Somalia II and the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).
Major General Ahsan holds a Bachelor of Science and master’s degrees in development studies and defence studies. He is fluent in English, French, Indonesian and Hindi.