Secretary-General Appoints Major General Mohammad Humayun Kabir of Bangladesh Force Commander of United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Major General Mohammad Humayun Kabir of Bangladesh as Force Commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP).  Major General Kabir will succeed Major General Kristin Lund of Norway, who will complete her assignment on 29 July 2016.

The Secretary-General pays tribute to Major General Lund, the first female United Nations Force Commander, for her service with UNFICYP, where her dedication, professionalism and leadership contributed greatly to the Organization’s efforts in Cyprus.

With more than 32 years of wide-ranging command and staff experience, Major General Kabir has had a distinguished military career, having held command positions at unit, battalion, brigade and divisional level in the Bangladesh Army since 1989, as well as senior staff appointments.  As a Brigadier General, he commanded an infantry brigade and served as Director of Military Operations for the Bangladesh Army.  He commanded an infantry division from 2013 to 2016, when he was appointed to his current position as Commandant of the Bangladesh Military Academy.

Major General Kabir’s experience with the United Nations includes service as a Military Observer with the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) from 2002 to 2003, and with the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) from 1995 to 1996.

He holds three master’s degrees, in international security and strategy from King’s College, London (2013); in business administration from the University of Dhaka (2002-2005); and in defence studies from Bangladesh National University (1998-1999).  He is also a graduate of the Royal College of Defence Studies, United Kingdom (2012-2013), and the United States Army Command and General Staff College (1999-2000).

Born in 1965, he is married and has three children.