BAGHDAD — Al-Qaida's front group in Iraq claimed responsibility on Thursday for a deadly daylight attack on Iraq's Central Bank.
In a statement posted on a militant website, the Islamic State of Iraq said it sent five men dressed in army uniforms and armed with weapons and explosive belts to attack the financial institution.
Photos posted on the same website showed the disfigured heads and body parts of men dressed in army fatigues buried in the rubble of what al-Qaida said is the Central Bank.
Video surveillance footage from the Central Bank seen by an Associated Press reporter showed an armed man dressed in army fatigues storm in the bank's back door and exchange fire with security guards. He is shot in the leg and falls to the ground before his explosive vest detonates. Two other militants then flee the bank while shooting behind them, then set off their vests.
Sunday's assault sparked clashes between militants and Iraqi security forces that lasted more than three hours and left more than 20 people dead.
