Against a backdrop of war in Iraq which the pope has vehemently opposed, the 82-year-old pontiff urged Christians to maintain belief in "God's justice and saving power".

"This divine silence is not an absence, as if God were abandoning history into the hands of the wicked.

"Even if at times God may appear to be silent, this 'silence' is but a prelude to his decisive intervention on behalf of the faithful," John Paul II told thousands of pilgrims during his weekly general audience in St Peter's Square.

The pontiff prayed on Sunday for an end to the war and for the victims of the unfolding conflict.

"Let us pray to (the Virgin) Mary for the victims of the current conflict. Let us pray to Mary, with both grief and trust, to intercede for peace in Iraq and in all the world's conflicts."

WAR.WIRE