Al Qaeda-linked group claims Baghdad car bomb

A statement purportedly by an Iraqi group headed by leading al Qaeda figure Abu Musab al-Zarqawi claimed responsibility for Thursday's suicide attack outside the US headquarters in Baghdad.

"At dawn on Thursday the heroic fighter Abu Mitab from the land of the Haramain (Saudi Arabia) went out in a car laden with 600 kg of TNT towards the headquarters of the occupying forces and their tails, the apostates ... and the operation was a success," said a statement by Jama'at al-Tawhid and Jihad which the United States has said is headed by Zarqawi.

It was not immediately possible to verify the authenticity of the Arabic-language statement published on Muntada al-Ansar Islamist Web site.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq