Abu Tayeb Muhammad Zahirul Alam, rcds, psc, is a retired

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

of Bangladesh Army. He served as Force Commander of the

United Nations Mission in Liberia The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) was a peacekeeping operation established in September 2003 to monitor a ceasefire agreement in Liberia following the resignation of President Charles Taylor and the conclusion of the Second Liberia ...

(UNMIL). He was the first officer in Bangladesh army to achieve such high post in the UN Peacekeeping Mission.Previously he was the commandant of the National Defence College, Bangladesh. He is serving as a chairman of Hamdard Public College's governing body.

Personal life and education

He was born in 1952 in Boalkhali,

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. He is married and has two children. Alam obtained his master's degree in War Studies from

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

in 1993 where he was a

Chevening Scholar The Chevening Scholarship is an international scholarship, funded by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, that lets foreign students with leadership qualities study at universities in the United Kingdom. History The Chevening Scholarship ...

, and has studied at the Royal College of Defence Studies in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Career

In Army

He joined the army in 1975 and has served in various capacities. From 1998 to 2000, he was Director of Military Training at the Army headquarters. During 2001–2003, he served as Division Commander. Prior to his appointment as Force Commander of UNMIL (UNMIL), he was serving as Commandant of the National Defence College, from 04 Jan 2004 to 12 Jun 2008. He supposed to join Australian High commission as an ambassador but later lieutenant general Masud Uddin Chowdhury joined instead. Then, he got the prestigious appointment as force Commander at Liberia.

UN mission

From 1994 to 1996, he commanded a mechanized infantry battalion within the United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observer Mission (UNIKOM). He was appointed as Force commander of UNMIL by

United Nations Secretary-General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-ge ...

Ban Ki-moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...

in October 2008.

Post retirement

After retirement Zahirul joined as president of seven member executive committee of Chevening Society of Bangladesh. He served as Chairman of Audit Committee of

United Commercial Bank United Commercial Bank (Chinese: 聯合銀行) was an overseas Chinese bank in the United States, based in San Francisco, California. It was a subsidiary of UCBH Holdings. Founded in 1974 as United Federal Savings and Loan Association, it cha ...

. He was chef de mission of Bangladesh contingent for Rio Olympics.

References

External links

UN Biography, Lieutenant General A.T.M. Zahirul Alam
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alam, A. T. M. Zahirul 1952 births Living people Alumni of King's College London Bangladesh Army generals Jhenaidah Cadet College alumni