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Archbishop of Canterbury: Don't let terror triumph

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The Queen receives some flowers from a young girlImage source, Getty Images
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The Queen was accompanied by family members at a service in Windsor

Today's world is full of terror, pain, poverty and despair, but those things should not be allowed to triumph, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.

In his Easter message, the Most Reverend Justin Welby remembered the victims of the recent bombings at two Coptic Christian churches in Egypt.

He called on his congregation to bring "restoration and hope".

In Windsor, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge joined the Queen and Prince Philip for an Easter service.

Prince George and Princess Charlotte did not attend, but Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Prince Edward and his family and the Princess Royal all turned out for the service at Windsor Castle.

Wellwishers waited outside St George's Chapel and applauded the Queen when she arrived.

Image source, Reuters
Image caption,

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were among those at St George's Chapel

At Canterbury Cathedral, the archbishop told worshippers: "The words Jesus says on that first Easter day, he says to you and me now, to each of us, to listen, to take hold of, within our hearts: Do not be afraid.

"These things, these grim events overshadow our lives because we fear that they may have the last word.

Media caption,

The Archbishop of Canterbury says people facing despair should remember the words "Do not be afraid"

"These things lie. They deceive. They pretend to have power that they do not have when they say that they are final. There is only one finality; Jesus, the crucified one, is alive."

He went on to say: "You and I must come alongside the suffering and, with love and gentleness, bring restoration and hope."

Meanwhile at the Vatican, Pope Francis used his Easter address to condemn Saturday's deadly attack on a bus convoy in Syria, and called for peace.

And at Westminster Cathedral, Archbishop Vincent Nichols called for co-operation, not conflict in the world in his Easter Sunday homily.

"We pray for peace in our troubled world, as confrontations harden and threats increase," said the head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

"We pray for wisdom and prudence in world leaders and an unwavering determination for cooperation rather than conflict."