Rabat – UN peacekeeping mission MINURSO’s headquarters in Laayoune welcomed this week its newly arrived Force Commander, Major General Jawwad Ahmed.
MINURSO said in a statement that a military welcome parade celebrated the arrival of Ahmed, in the presence of MINURSO Chief of Mission Support, Ron Misty Kamwendo of Malawi, Force Chief and other MINURSO officials and personnel.
The ceremony marked Ahmed’s remarks emphasizing the importance of assuming his new position and reaffirming his commitment to serving the “cause of peace under the principles of the UN Charter.”
MINURSO’s website quoted the MINURSO official as expressing his eagerness to visit the mission team site across the territory and learn from representatives to “gain a deeper understanding” of the mission work and challenges.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Ahmed on August 11 as the new force commander of the peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara.
Ahmed succeeded Major General Md Fakhrul Ahsan of Bangladesh, who completed his assignment on August 2, 2026.
Ahmed boasts 35 years of leadership and operational experience in the Pakistani Army and UN peacekeeping.
His portfolio also covers his experience as director general in the Ministry of Defense in Rawalpindi, where he oversaw command and control, local governance, and administration of cantonment areas nationwide.
He was also the general officer commanding of an infantry division, as well as the general director of the Inspection and Evaluation Directorate at General Headquarters and Force Commander Northern Areas.
Ahmed served as Brigade Commander in cantonments and in the field area at high-altitude regions and chief instructor at the National Command and Staff College, Quetta.
He holds a Master of Science in the art and science of warfare and a Master of Philosophy in public policy and strategic security management from the National Defense University in Pakistan.
Ahmed’s appointment comes at a breaking point, marking a momentum in the Sahara dossier. Over 130 countries support Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the most realistic or the only basis able to end the dispute over Western Sahara.
The US is also pushing for more dialogue, urging the parties to the dispute– particularly Algeria’s regime– to engage in the UN-led political process to contribute to finding a realistic and agreed-upon solution to the dispute.
For the US, the Autonomy Plan is the only framework to end the dispute, arguing that any other paths block the UN-led process.
The US position aligns with UN Security Council Resolution 2797, which recognizes the Moroccan proposal as the genuine political basis to end the dispute.
