The United Nations has appointed Major General of Royal Nepal Army (RNA), Balananda Sharma as the Commander of Golan Heights-based UN Forces, the Kathmandu Post said Tuesday. “The post is equivalent to assistant general secretary of the UN.”

Sharma will be the third RNA officer to hold the post as Krishna Narayan Singh Thapa and Victory Rana have served in similar post in the past, the daily said.

Sharma, currently chief of the RNA’s west divisional headquarters in Nepalgunj, will be replaced by Rukumangad Katuwal, deputy coordinator of the National Defence Council’s secretariat, the daily said.

Golan-Heights are the controversial hilly areas in the Middle East, currently under the control of Israel.

With prompt service in maintaining peace and order in the world, Nepal has earned fame as one of the top ten UN peacekeepers.

In this connection, Nepal, for a sustained role of Nepali peace troops abroad, is vying for a non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council for 2007-08 term, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry. nepalnews.com mr Dec 30