UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appealed for a "new and urgent push for peace" in the Middle East from the concerned parties on Tuesday, including the international community.

In his last briefing to the Security Council on the region, Annan said the Middle East was in "profound crisis," and the situation is now more complex, more fragile and more dangerous than it has been for a very long time with mistrust between Israelis and Palestinians reaching "new heights."

"Tensions in the region are near the breaking point ... Extremism and populism are leaving less political space for moderates, including those States that have reached peace agreements with Israel ... The opportunity for negotiating a two-state solution will last for only so long," he warned.

"Should we fail to seize it, the people who most directly bear the brunt of this calamity will be consigned to new depths of suffering and grief. Other conflicts and problems will become that much harder to resolve. And extremists the world over would enjoy a boost in their recruiting efforts," he said.

Despite such problems and acknowledging that "much trust will have to be rebuilt," Annan remains optimistic about a diplomatic solution, as he called for changes in mindset by both Israelis and Palestinians and more effort by the Quartet, which is seeking a two-state solution, known as the roadmap peace plan, for Israel and Palestine to live side-by-side in peace.

He said the roadmap plan, endorsed by the council in its resolution 1515, is "still the reference point around which any effort to reenergize a political effort should be concentrated."

"Its sponsor, the Quartet, retains its validity because of its singular combination of legitimacy, political strength and financial and economic clout," he said.

But the Quartet needs to do more to restore faith in the roadmap's practicability and to create the conditions for resuming a viable peace process, he stressed.

"It needs to find a way to institutionalize its consultations with the relevant regional partners. It needs to engage the parties directly in its deliberations," he said.

The time has come for the Quartet to be clearer at the outset on the parameters of an end-game deal. And it will have to be open to new ideas and initiatives, he added.

The council was studying a report submitted on Monday by the UN chief on the Middle East situation, the last one on the region before he steps down at the end of the month.

The roadmap peace plan, which was designed by the Quartet and launched in June 2003, has barely made any progress ever since.