Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb on Sunday lashed out at the United Nations and the Veto system during his speech at the opening of a forum titled ‘Promoting Peace in the Muslim Communities.’
He said the first article of the UN Charter provides for keeping peace and security and refraining from interfering in internal affairs. “Yet the United Nations is unable to deter many unfair and unjust policies,” he said.
He added that although the United Nations was formed to face threats to global peace and stop acts of aggression between nations, the major powers still allow or disallow peace to nations according to their personal interests. “To them, the end justifies the means,” he said.
“The UN Charter itself does not allow a peace that is based on justice and fairness,” he said. “It does not take into account the rights of others.”
He said the Veto itself threatens world peace. “It prevents the organization from prosecuting offenders in many regions of tension around the world,” he said. “Many analysts consider the US veto on the Palestinian/Zionist conflict as the most important cause of international terrorism.”
“Although I do not believe in the conspiracy theory that blames the West for all our problems, I think there are invisible hands that control the game,” he said.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
