Major changes in top positions of Bangladesh Army

In a major shake-up in the top brass, several senior generals in the Bangladesh Army have been given promotions, relocations and new assignments.

Maj Gen Md Nazimuddin, currently General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 55 Infantry Division and Jessore area commander, will assume the responsibilities of the chief of general staff (CGS).

Gen Nazim fills in for Lt Gen Sabbir Ahmed, who is currently on Leave Preparatory to Retirement (LPR).

Commissioned in 1983, Gen Nazim had also worked as the director general of Ansar and Village Defence Party.

Maj Gen Md Saiful Abedin, now commandant of Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC), will be the new Director General of the powerful military spy agency DGFI, succeeding Maj Gen Mohammad Akbar Hossain.

Gen Saiful was commissioned in 1986 and had worked in DGFI earlier. The former commandant of Bangladesh Infantry Regimental Centre had also worked in UN peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast.

Gen Akbar from the Artillery Corps was commissioned in 1985. After heading the DGFI for four years, he will move on to his new role as GOC of 9th Infantry Division at Savar.

His Bangladesh Military Academy course mate and the division’s GOC, Maj Gen Waqar-uz-Zaman, has been made Military Secretary of the Bangladesh Army, a role previously discharged by Maj Gen Abdullahil Baki.

A former GOC at Bogra Cantonment, Gen Baki of 10th BMA Long Course has been made Commandant of DSCSC.

Major Gen Ataul Hakim Sarwar, GOC of 10th Infantry Division, is now Log Area Commander at Dhaka Cantonment. He was commissioned from the BMA 11th Long Course.

The division at Ramu will now be headed by Maj Gen Maksudur Rahman, previously deputy force commander of UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur.

Brig Gen Nayeem Ashfaque Chowdhury, director military operations (DMO), has been promoted from major general and made the head of 55th Infantry Division stationed in Jessore.

The Ministry of Defence issued a circular on the changes on Thursday, Inter Services Public Relation Directorate Director Lt Col Mohammad Rashidul Hasan told bdnews24.com.