.png)
PARTI Amanah Negara president Mohamad Sabu has criticised world leaders who paid their final respects to the late Pope Francis, accusing some of hypocrisy for honouring a man who championed human rights while simultaneously supporting, or remaining silent on, the actions of the Israeli regime.
The funeral of Pope Francis, held at St Peter’s Square in the Vatican City, drew one of the largest gatherings of global leaders in recent years.
Among the 130 international delegations were Prince William, US President Donald Trump, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
"Many of them are staunch supporters of the Zionist regime," Mohamad Sabu, who is also the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, said on Sunday.
"These are the same leaders who stood solemnly to honour a religious figure who was outspoken against the atrocities in Gaza, yet they continue to support or remain silent in the face of those very atrocities."
"Irony. That is the word. They attend a funeral to honour a man, yet never respected Pope Francis’ calls for the world to rise and end the cruelty inflicted by Zionists upon the Palestinian people," he added.
Pope Francis, the 266th head of the Roman Catholic Church, passed away at the age of 88. He was widely recognised for his efforts to reform the Church and his outspoken advocacy for social justice.
Mohamad Sabu, better known as Mat Sabu, said the global response to Pope Francis' death had laid bare the duplicity of powerful world leaders.
"Parti Amanah Negara continues to stand by the principle that the struggle against Zionist brutality is not merely a religious issue, but a humanitarian one," he said.
"Unfortunately, world leaders are more afraid of losing political power than they are committed to defending the values of humanity," he added. - April 27, 2025