The Archbishop of Canterbury today expressed his deep personal sorrow on being informed of the death of King Hussein of Jordan.

"For five decades King Hussein has been one of the most significant leaders in a region of the world where leadership has so often made the difference between war and peace.

"His compassion for all people, reflected in his concern for Christian minorities, has endeared him to millions, not only in his own country but across the globe.

"Anglicans world-wide will join the people of Jordan in mourning a man whose absence will be felt deeply whenever men and women of goodwill are to be found.

"With them we pray that the goal for which he worked so tirelessly, peace with justice in the Middle East, may be finally achieved.

"He could have no more fitting epitaph."