DFC VISITS SECTOR WEST AND SECTOR CENTRE

The Deputy Force Commander and Chief Military Observer, Brigadier General Walid Kreishan accompanied by UN Military Observers (UNMOs) and staff officers from UNMEE headquarters in Asmara, visited Sector West and Sector Centre in July and August. In Sector West, he visited the Sector headquarters, the UNMO headquarters, the Bangladesh Engineering Company in Barentu, te JORBATT Company at Om Hajer and the UNMO team sites at Badme and Om Hajer on 8 August. On 14 August, in Sector Centre he toured the Sector Centre headquarters and the UNMO headquarters in Adigrat. Brigadier General Walid Kreishan received comprehensive briefings from the Sector Commanders, Sector Senior UNMOs, Company Commanders and the Team Leaders during his visits.

During the briefings, he exchanged views with them on various issues pertaining to mine incidents, patrol activities, the situation in the areas of responsibility and liaison with local authorities. He thanked all for their excellent and hard work in the cause of peace and urged them to keep their spirits up.

CENTRAL SECTOR WELCOMES A NEW COMMANDER

The Central Sector has a new Commander. He is Colonel Anand Singh Rawat, Commanding Officer of the Battalion of the 15th Sikh Light Infantry Regiment. He took over his new command on 28 July in a handover ceremony in Adigrat, which was attended by the SRSG, Ambassador Legwaila Joseph Legwaila and the Force Commander, Major-General Robert Gordon, as well as other UNMEE Staff.Speaking at the handover ceremony from INDBATT2 to INDBATT3, the Colonel said that he was very optimistic about his battalion’s ability to maintain the high standards already set by Indian Peacekeepers all over the globe. He said: "With the vast and rich operational experience and the strenuous training undergone by my officers and men back home, I don’t foresee any problems in contributing our best towards the aims and goals of UNMEE". A career soldier and an alumnus of the Indian Military Academy, Col Anand Singh Rawat was commissioned into the Sikh Light Infantry in June 1982. He has served in diverse terrains in India ranging from the hot deserts in the west to the highest battlefield of Siachen Glacier in the north. He has vast instructional, staff and command experience and his staff appointments include one as a General Staff Officer, Grade 3 at the Military Operations Directorate at Indian Army Headquarters. He was also a Brigade Major of an Infantry brigade operating in the North Eastern States of Indian and served as an instructor at the Commando Wing of the Infantry School and the prestigious Indian Military Training Team at Bhutan. Col Rawat has distinguished himself in his career courses including the prestigious Defence Services Staff College.

He took over the command of the 15th Battalion of the Sikh Light Infantry known in Indian military circles as the "Glorious Fifteen", on 20 May 2001 while the battalion was deployed in Counter Insurgency Operations. He has trained and led the battalion from the front in a highly active and operationally volatile area. An outstanding sportsman, Col Rawat is also a keen golfer and is fond of sketching, painting and reading. He and his wife Rajni have two daughters.

AND SO DOES SECTOR WEST

Colonel Abdallah Al Khriesat of Jordan took over as the Commander of Sector West on 14 July. Born in the Jordanian city of Salt on 20 November 1960, Colonel Khriesat joined the Jordanian Royal Military Academy at Zarka in Central Jordan in 1978. He graduated as Second Lieutenant in November 1980 in the Armoured Corps. His first assignment was as a tank platoon commander. Since then he has held a number of prestigious appointments such as tank company commander, tank battalion commander and instructor at the Artillery School. Before his current appointment Colonel Abdallah was the chief of the Military Science Branch at Muat’h University. On the eve of taking over as the sixth Commander of Sector West, Colonel Abdallah, who is also the Commanding Officer of JORBATT6, was confident and optimistic about his new assignment. "It is my pleasure to participate in a UN international peacekeeping force, the mission of securing peace and security and offering aid to those who need it in this part of the world. We will be expert soldiers and messengers of love and peace under the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah II", he said. A graduate of the Military Staff College, Colonel Abdallah has also excelled in a number of basic and advanced courses in armoured warfare. He is a qualified Gunnery instructor and is also trained in chemical warfare. An illustrious soldier, Colonel Abdallah is a recipient of numerous medals, ribbons and decorations including the Jordanian Independence Medal, the Leadership Medal and the Jordanian Merit Medal. The Colonel, who enjoys a game of billiards in his leisure time, is happily married with seven children.