Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ faces setback as Vatican refuses to participate, backs UN instead
Pope Leo XIV waves as he leaves after leading a Mass during a visit to the parish of Santa Maria Regina Pacis in Ostia Lido, Rome, Italy on February 15, 2026. — Reuters pic
Wednesday, 18 Feb 2026 12:46 PM MYT
WASHINGTON, Feb 18 — The Vatican will not participate in US President Donald Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace” initiative, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s top diplomatic official, said on Tuesday while adding that efforts to handle crisis situations should be managed by the United Nations.
Pope Leo, the first US pope and a critic of some of Trump’s policies, was invited to join the board in January.
Under Trump’s Gaza plan that led to a fragile ceasefire in October, the board was meant to supervise Gaza’s temporary governance. Trump thereafter said the board, with him as chair, would be expanded to tackle global conflicts. The board will hold its first meeting in Washington on Thursday to discuss Gaza’s reconstruction.
Italy and the European Union have said their representatives plan to attend as observers as they have not joined the board.
The Holy See “will not participate in the Board of Peace because of its particular nature, which is evidently not that of other States,” Parolin said.
“One concern,” he said, “is that at the international level it should above all be the UN that manages these crisis situations. This is one of the points on which we have insisted.”
Many rights experts say that Trump overseeing a board to supervise a foreign territory’s affairs resembled a colonial structure. The board launched last month has also faced criticism for not including a Palestinian.
Countries have reacted cautiously to Trump’s invitation, with experts concerned that the board could undermine the U.N. Some of Washington’s Middle Eastern allies have joined but its Western allies have stayed away so far.
The Gaza truce has been repeatedly violated with hundreds of Palestinians and four Israeli soldiers reported killed since it began in October.
Israel’s assault on Gaza has killed over 72,000, caused a hunger crisis and internally displaced Gaza’s entire population.
Multiple rights experts, scholars and a UN inquiry say it amounts to genocide. Israel calls its actions self-defence after Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took over 250 hostages in a late 2023 attack.
Leo has repeatedly decried conditions in Gaza. The pope, leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, rarely joins international boards. The Vatican has an extensive diplomatic service and is a permanent observer at the United Nations. — Reuters
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His Holiness probably knew that Trump's BOP has been an Israeli Machiavellian devious deceptive device to bypass the UN where Israel faces increasing opposition, objections and disgust.
Non-Ishmaels are not allowed even to set foot in the Holy City of Mekah.
ReplyDeleteIshmaels were permitted to pray just outside Westminster Abbey, the one of the most Holy Church for the Anglicans, even though there are 500 mosques in London.
Non-Muslims were officially banned from entering Mecca in 1081 AD, roughly 473 years after the founding of Islam. While religious texts provided early directives restricting access to the sanctuary of the Ka'ba to maintain its purity, the formal prohibition was instituted under ruler Noor-ud-Din following espionage incidents.
Initial Prohibition: The Quran (Surah Tawbah 9:28) instructs that "polytheists are unclean, so let them not approach al-Masjid al-Haram after this, their [final] year".
Historical Context: The formal, enforced ban arose around 1081 AD to protect the city, particularly after attempts to remove Prophet Muhammad's body.
Modern Enforcement: Today, the Saudi Arabian government strictly enforces this ban, with checkpoints around the city to prevent non-Muslims from entering.
Consequences: Non-Muslims caught entering Mecca may face penalties, including fines, imprisonment, or deportation.
This is clearly apartheid but the world does not object. Very Aneh.
Meanwhile people of all (or no) faiths can visit the Vatican, Sistine Chapel, St Peters Basilica, the Holy of Holies for Catholics. No problemo.
Recently....
Vatican to open a prayer space inside its library to accommodate visiting Muslim scholars. The pope holds audience with people all over the world. When a person of the Muslim faith visits, they are afforded a place to pray while visiting.
But again, a Catholic can't even enter Mekah....not even the Papa.
So?
DeleteMfer, who can enter the holy of the holies?
Same faith origin, same themes with expansive interpretations to show the oneupmanshipof fart!