THESE are unprecedented times. Before the week is out, we will be at war: fighting an enemy who has not committed an act of aggression against us or our allies, with the backing of neither the international community nor millions of British people.

Britain declared war against Hitler after he invaded one of our allies. We took back the Falklands by force when they had been seized by Argentina.

Our troops helped sweep Saddam Hussein's invading armies from Kuwait. All were retaliatory actions fought in the name of justice.

Now our forces face Saddam again. But this time, we will fire the first shots, changing the world forever.

Our aggression will send a Cruise missile through international law. The United States, backed by Britain, will be declaring its right to attack a country because Washington disapproves of its government.

This dubious justification is why war is so widely opposed. By now, we may have expected a mood of depressed fatalism to have overtaken Britain. But the extraordinary sight of 4,500 people marching for peace in York - a city not noted for political agitation - demonstrates anti-war sentiment is as strong as ever. We are at a loss to know how Unison's call for a walkout will do anything other than disrupt the lives of the vulnerable, however.

Saddam Hussein is an evil tyrant whose removal is undoubtedly a worthy ambition (although we have no idea what sort of regime the US has in mind to replace his dictatorship).

But the price will be high. Women and children are going to be killed. Our forces will suffer casualties: there are many families in Yorkshire praying for the safe return of their loved ones from the Gulf.

Then there is the aftermath. This war will split the Western powers, critically damage the United Nations and make a terrorist strike on both Britain and the US more likely.

On this beautiful spring day, it is hard to contemplate what is about to happen. This time next week, the world will be a very different place.

Updated: 10:22 Monday, March 17, 2003