Al-Qaeda Claims Iraq Attacks
By RFE RL
(RFE/RL) — Iraq’s Al-Qaeda affiliate has claimed responsibility for a wave of deadly attacks across the country in June and July that it said were part of a new offensive against the Shi’ite-led government.
In a statement posted on a militant website on August 13, the Islamic State of Iraq said it was behind last month’s double bombing that targeted a counterterrorism unit in Baghdad.
The statement claimed 70 people were killed in the July 31 attack on the security headquarters.
Government officials put the death toll at 21. The militant group also claimed responsibility for 27 shootings and other attacks on government and security officials from June 17 until July 20.
Iraq’s Health Ministry has said that militants killed 325 Iraqis in July, making it the bloodiest month in two years.
