Online Desk: Education Minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury on Wednesday said the UNESCO did not confer “The Tree of Peace” award to Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus.

Mohibul, who is also the Chairman of the Bangladesh UNESCO Commission, made the statement to reporters at the Bangladesh Secretariat.

He said “Dr Yunus was conferred the ‘Tree of Peace’ award by an Israeli sculptor, upon invitation from the Ganjavi Foundation in Azerbaijan.”

The minister said that Dr Yunus’ claim that he received the award from UNESCO is untrue.

“The information propagated by the Yunus Centre regarding the UNESCO award is inaccurate and misleading,” said the minister. “It is imperative that we set the record straight and ensure that such misinformation does not tarnish the reputation of our country. An explanation will be sent to the UNESCO headquarters regarding this matter as it is humiliating for Bangladesh.”

The minister also warned of legal repercussions if the Yunus Centre persisted in spreading false claims about the UNESCO award. He emphasised the need for immediate cessation of such misleading information to prevent further damage to the reputation of both Dr Yunus and Bangladesh on the international stage.

However, comments from the Yunus Centre were not immediately available.