Al-Qaeda claims Iraq bombs that killed 55

BAGHDAD: Al-Qaeda's local franchise in Iraq has claimed responsibility for a string of car bombings in Baghdad that killed 55 people.

In a statement posted late Monday hours after the bombings that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant says the attacks were in retaliation to the arrests, torturing and targeting of by the government.

Monday's coordinated attacks were the latest in a months-long surge of violence that brings Iraq closer to the level of sectarian bloodshed it underwent in 2006-2007. More than 4,500 people have been killed since April.

The authenticity of the statement could not be independently confirmed. It was posted on a website commonly used by militants and its style was consistent with earlier al-Qaida statements. (AP)