Rabat – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres named Pakistani Zia Ur Rehman as new force commander for the UN mission in Western Sahara, MINURSO.
According to a UN statement, the Pakistani major general will replace Major General Xiaojun Wang of China, whose term ended on February 17.
“The Secretary-General is grateful to Major Wang for his exemplary service and contribution to the work of MINURSO,” the statement read.
Rehman has 30 years experience in national and international leadership.
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He served as commander of military formations on operations and directing staff appointments at command, and has experience at staff and war college levels, added the statement.
“He possesses a range of experiences in other leadership, staff, liaison and operational tasks, including as a Military Observer in the then United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).”
Rehman also worked as senior national representative in the US Central Command Headquarters in Florida 2015-2016.
He also held the position of the commander of an infantry brigade from 2016 to 2017, as well as the commander of an infantry division from 2017.
Rehman also has a strong education background, holding a bachelor’s from the Pakistan Military Academy in Kabul and a master’s of business administration from the Canadian School of Management in Lahore, added the statement.
The commander also holds another bachelor’s from the University of Balochistan in Pakistan and three other master’s degrees.
