"Bush is a terrible leader, not only for the United States but for the entire world," Yunus, a 66-year-old micro-credit pioneer and "banker to the poor", told El Mundo newspaper.

"He has led the world on a dangerous path and it will take a lot of time to take it back on the right one," he was quoted as saying.

"Bush has caused tremendous damage. The cold war was over and with it all this wasted energy and mistrust of so many years. We were speaking about the dividends of peace," he added.

"And then the war on terror started and the vengeance and again all this money was invested in war technology."

Asked by El Mundo about the responsibilities of the September 11, 2001 hijackers who flew passenger jets into targets in New York and Washington, Mr Yunus said they were "no saints, they are evil".

"What I'm saying is that the military response to terrorism is not a solution."

Mr Yunus and the Grameen Bank which he created have helped millions in Bangladesh extricate themselves from poverty through tiny, collateral-free loans.