Lieutenant General Mohammad Asadullah Minhazul Alam met with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Wednesday before departing for Cyprus to serve as Force Commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission.
The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s office in the Cabinet Division of the Bangladesh Secretariat, with the Prime Minister’s Defence Adviser, Brigadier General (retd) AKM Shamsul Islam, also present.
Lt Gen Minhajul Alam will leave Dhaka for the UN headquarters in New York on Friday. After completing official procedures there, he will assume his duties as the 23rd Force Commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP).
During the meeting, discussions were held on Bangladesh’s role in UN peacekeeping operations, professionalism, and the reputation and prestige of the armed forces on the international stage.
Minhazul Alam is the eighth military officer in Bangladesh’s history to serve as Force Commander in a UN peacekeeping mission. Previously, seven Bangladeshi military officers have successfully served in this capacity in eight different countries.
Born in Chattogram in 1971, Minhazul Alam received his commission in the Infantry Corps from the Bangladesh Military Academy in December 1991 and was awarded the “Sword of Honour” for his all-round performance.
He has led “Operation Kuwait Reconstruction” and played a significant role leading a brigade related to Rohingya camp security. He has served as Sector Commander of the UN force in Central Africa, as Chief Instructor and Commandant of the Defence Services Command and Staff College, and as Managing Director of Bangladesh Machine Tools Factory Limited.
He earned his PhD in International Relations from Jahangirnagar University. Before his UN appointment, he was GOC of the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command and also served as GOC of the 10th Infantry Division in Cox’s Bazar.
Military members from 18 countries are participating in this UN mission: Argentina, Austria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Ghana, Hungary, India, Mongolia, Pakistan, Paraguay, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom.
