UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday formally announced the appointment of Senegalese diplomat Khassim Diagne as UN special representative and head of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus (Unficyp).

Diagne, who had previously served as the UN resident and humanitarian coordinator in Mali, brings more than 25 years of experience in international affairs and senior leadership within the UN system to the role.

During his career with the UN, he held the position as director of the political, peacekeeping, humanitarian and human rights unit in the office of the Secretary-General until 2021. He has previously worked in Cameroon, Liberia and Pakistan.

As the new special special representative and head of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus, Diagne follows Colin Stewart of Canada, who held the position since 2021 and gave his final briefing to the UN Security Council in July