Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Al-Tayyeb
“The two-state solution has been on the table for more than a quarter of a century without any major international will to achieve it,” Al-Tayyeb said during a meeting in Cairo with Italy’s ambassador to Egypt, Agostino Palese.
Al-Tayyeb said the scale of violence against Palestinians had reached what he described as “a dangerous level of injustice, aggression, and violation of all civilized, religious, human, and moral values,” arguing that the international community now faced a clear choice between opposing such acts or becoming complicit in them.
He said the killing of civilians, including children, could not be described as a war but amounted to crimes committed against a defenceless population. While acknowledging the loss of life, Al-Tayyeb said Israel and its supporters were also facing long-term losses as global perceptions shifted.
“The world had long accepted the occupier’s narrative through false propaganda and a media machine working day and night,” he said, adding that public opinion had begun to change.
He pointed to protests in Western countries against the Israeli war on Gaza, saying public support that once helped justify Israel’s actions had eroded. Al-Tayyeb also praised Italian dockworkers who refused to load ships carrying weapons destined for use in Gaza, calling their refusal a humanitarian act reflecting “a living conscience”.
Ambassador Palese said Italy supports efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East and stressed the urgency of delivering humanitarian aid, including food and medicine, to civilians in Gaza.
Italy has refused to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government has said unilateral recognition would be “counterproductive” and that Palestinian statehood should emerge from direct negotiations.
In September, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the New York Declaration by an overwhelming majority, calling for “tangible, time-bound and irreversible steps” towards the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.
Italy has seen repeated pro-Palestinian protests in recent months, including demonstrations, port actions, and labour strikes opposing Israel’s war in Gaza and calling for diplomatic and economic pressure on Israel.
Israel has killed at least 70,937 Palestinians and wounded more than 171,000 others since Tel Aviv launched its war on the strip in October 2023.
Israeli fire has killed at least 405 people since a truce, brokered by Cairo, Doha, Ankara, and Washington, took effect on 10 October, amid accusations that Israel has violated the agreement and delayed a transition to its next phase, which would require a withdrawal of forces from Gaza.
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