The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, has appealed for Israelis and Palestinians to step back from "the brink of catastrophe" in the Holy Land.

In a statement from Lambeth Palace, Dr Carey strongly condemned the continuing and worsening bloodshed and violence, warning that they were "a dead end."

Dr Carey said: "As a Christian leader, this appalling wave of violence and bloodshed at Eastertide-enveloping as it has now the town of Bethlehem - is especially disturbing and will appal all people of good faith.

"Having returned very recently from the Holy Land myself, I am convinced more than ever that the international community must redouble its efforts to help the two ancient peoples - Jews and Arabs - to find a lasting peace. That belief is reinforced by conversations at all levels both on the ground and since my return. I appeal to all concerned to step back from the brink of catastrophe.

"The time has come for an immediate ceasefire. It is imperative that all sides stop the violence and start again the search for a constructive and peaceful settlement.

"It is the ordinary citizens of both communities who are paying the price of political failure. This cannot continue. It is the duty of political leaders to work for a sustainable way forward, not towards a dead end.

"We are witnessing an increasingly polarised situation, in which dangerously simplistic diagnoses provoke equally dangerous would-be remedies.

"We must seek to help salve the pain and frustration of Palestinians who long for a land of their own, where they can live in freedom and create a new and prosperous future. Instead, they face the daily reality of military repression and domination in which innocent lives are lost; of an economy close to meltdown; of growing poverty and deprivation.

"We must also honour the deep Israeli yearning for peace and security and for an end to the hostility towards Israel's very existence. Suicide attacks, claiming the lives at random of innocent Israelis, are totally wrong and must stop.

"I also call on fellow religious leaders in the region to intensify their efforts to end the bloodshed. The Alexandria Declaration, signed earlier this year, represents an unprecedented commitment by religious leaders in the Holy Land - Christian, Muslim and Jewish - to work together and in their communities for peace and security. It is a commitment which they should honour with all the strength and goodwill at their disposal."