Cleric Gives Conditional Support for War on Iraq

LONDON —  The second-ranking bishop in the Church of England declared conditional support for war against Iraq to battle the “forces of evil and wickedness,” breaking ranks with the new archbishop of Canterbury.

Archbishop of York David Hope, in a television interview, said he believed military action against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s regime could be justified “in the very last resort.”

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams is on record opposing military action in Iraq.

“I have a very strong, almost ingrained, antipathy toward war,” Hope said.

But, he added, “I have to recognize that human nature can be so fallen and dark -- there are forces of evil and wickedness -- and that does have to be addressed. I would say that in the very last resort, it may be possible that we have to resort to war.”