UNSG appoints Maj Gen Tesfay Gidey Hailemichael of Ethiopia as Force Commander for UNISFA

24 Feb 2017

UNSG appoints Maj Gen Tesfay Gidey Hailemichael of Ethiopia as Force Commander for UNISFA

United Nations Secretary-General  António Guterres announced the appointment of Major General Tesfay Gidey Hailemichael of Ethiopia as Force Commander for the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA). 

He succeeds Major General Hassen Ebrahim Mussa of Ethiopia, who completed his assignment on 17 January 2017. The Secretary-General is grateful to Major General Mussa for his dedication and effective leadership of UNISFA as Head of the military component. 

Major General Hailemichael has had a long and distinguished career with the Ethiopian Armed Forces spanning over thirty-three years. He graduated from the Ethiopian Defense Command and Staff College (1995) and is currently the Head of the Defense Logistics Department in the Ethiopian Armed Forces since April 2014. He previously served as Corps Commander (2011-2014). Prior to this, he was Deputy Army Corps Commander (2009-2011), Division Commander (2003-2007), Brigade Commander (1997-1998), among other appointments within the Ethiopian Armed Forces. He is a member of the Defense Council since 2011, and holds various decorations. 

Major General Hailemichael holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from the Siddarth HIV Research Institute, Ethiopia. 
        
Born in 1965, he is married with three children.

New York, 23 February 2017