Plot to kill Pope was act of war, Italian official says

Italian Defense Minister Lelio Lagorio declared last year's attempt to kill Pope John Paul II ''an act of war'' and said the plot was carried out as an alternative to a military invasion of Poland.

In an address to the Italian Parliament, Mr. Lagorio also disclosed many particulars that suggested the Bulgarian secret services were involved in the assassination attempt, in an attempt to destabilize the Polish Solidarity union, and in the kidnapping of US Gen. James Dozier. Mr. Lagorio was one of four ministers scheduled to give Parliament its first official explanation of three government investigations of the so-called ''Bulgarian connection.''