Press ministers appointed to high commissions in New Delhi, London

The government has appointed press ministers to the foreign missions in New Delhi, India and London, the United Kingdom.

In separate notifications issued today, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs appointed Faisal Mahmud and Akbar Hossain as the ministers of the press wing to the Bangladesh High Commissions in New Delhi and London respectively.

The appointments are contingent on them relinquishing work-relations with any other profession, business, or government, semi-government, and private organisaitons.

Both the press ministers will be appointed contractually for two years.

The notifications were issued upon the orders of the president, and signed by Hayat Md Rafiq, deputy secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A journalism graduate of Dhaka University, Akbar Hossain joined The Daily Star in June 2003 and moved to the BBC in October 2005. He is currently working as a senior correspondent for the BBC World Service in Dhaka, where he contributes to both the Bengali and English services.

Faisal has reported on Bangladesh for several international outlets, including Al Jazeera, Nikkei Asia and Anadolu Agency. He is also the editor of an online news portal Bangla Outlook (English).

He is the youngest son of Dr. Md Alee Murtuza, the former Vice-Chancellor of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), and the nephew of Amanullah Mohammad Asaduzzaman, known as "Shaheed Asad," a martyr of the Mass Upsurge of 1969.