Six BD peacekeepers posthumously honoured with UN medal

Six Bangladeshi peacekeepers who lost their lives while serving with the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) in Kadugli, Sudan, are posthumously awarded the prestigious Dag Hammarskjöld Medal at a ceremony held at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday.

The honour is presented during the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers ceremony, where United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres hands over the medals to Bangladesh’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury.

The fallen peacekeepers – Corporal Md Masud Rana, Private Md Jahangir Alam, Private Md Sobuj Mia, Private Md Mominul Islam, Private Shamim Reza and Private Santo Mondol – are killed in a drone strike on 13 December 2025 while serving under the UN flag, according to the Bangladesh Permanent Mission in New York on Saturday.

During the commemorative programme, Secretary-General António Guterres lays a wreath in honour of nearly 4,500 peacekeepers who have died in the line of duty since 1948 and observes a minute of silence in their memory.

He also highlights the contribution of more than 50,000 UN peacekeepers currently serving in missions worldwide to protect civilians and support peace in conflict-affected regions.

This year, the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal is awarded to 68 military, police and civilian peacekeepers from 33 Member States who make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

Following the ceremony, Ambassador Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury pays tribute to the fallen peacekeepers by signing the Book of Condolence.

The United Nations pauses to honour more than 4,500 peacekeepers who have lost their lives in service over the past 78 years, as the International Day of UN Peacekeepers is marked.