MOSCOW, June 23: International organizations must call on religious leaders to rein in growing fanaticism among their followers, an advisory council comprising former heads of state said here Monday.

“We urge religious leaders in all religions that they have a particular responsibility to avoid fanaticism and to prevent their faith from being manipulated by politicians,” said former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt.

A document adopted by the InterAction Council after their meeting Monday in the Russian capital called for religious leaders to prevent their teachings from being “manipulated for violence for secular purposes,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt, who serves as honorary chairman, said the council — which comprises more than 30 former world leaders — also urged an end to the crisis in the Middle East.

“Both Israel and Palestine, in the end, would need international security guaruntees if a resolution to the complex question is to be found,” Schmidt said, quoting the council declaration.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hosted the Kremlin meeting, urged the council to address the “two new threats and new complexities facing us in this new century — the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and international terrorism.”

“Today we are all dependent on each other — we can only answer these questions together,” Putin said, adding that the United Nations must play a key role in all international conflicts, including post-war Iraq and the Middle East peace process.—AFP