The Archbishop of Canterbury made a last minute visit to Gaza on Thursday as part of his official trip to the Holy Land.

Justin Welby visited Palestinian Christians in the beleaguered strip and led worship in Gaza City's Anglican hospital.

He was accompanied by the fourteenth Anglican bishop in Jerusalem, Suheil Dawani, and described the surprise visit as 'extraordinary' after Israeli authority granted them permits at the last minute, according to the Guardian.

The Hamas-ruled stretch is blockaded by the Israeli navy and surrounded by walls and fences.

A brutal war in 2014 saw 2,251 Palestinians, mainly civilians, killed and 74 Israelis, according to UN figures. Up to 50 days of intense fighting left more than 100,000 people homeless and much of the city reduced to rubble.

During his short visit Welby visited two hospitals in Gaza City, St John' Eye hospital and the Anglican-run al-Ahli Arab hospital where he led a service in the chapel.

Afterwards he met members of Gaza's small Christian population who make up less than 3,000 of the 1.9million Palestinian inhabitants.

They are generally accepted by Hamas, the Islamist movement that has ruled Gaza since 2006.

After meeting the Christians, Welby laid a wreath at the Gaza War Cemetery, where 3691 British and imperial troops are buried from the battles of Gaza in 1917.

The visit was part of Welby's 12-day tour of the Middle East. Next week, Welby will visit Bethlehem, where he will meet with the Palestinian Christian community and the city's Christian Mayor, Vera Baboun. He is expected to comment on the plight of Palestinian Christians.