BAGHDAD - An al Qaeda-linked group posted a web statement Tuesday claiming responsibility for a suicide car bombing that killed nine U.S. soldiers and wounded 20 in the worst attack on American ground forces in Iraq in more than a year.
The Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group of Sunni insurgents that includes al Qaeda in Iraq, said it was behind Monday's attack on a U.S. patrol base in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad. The area has seen a spike in violence since a U.S.-led crackdown in the capital aimed at curbing violence there.
The dead Americans were all members of the 82nd Airborne Division, said a spokesman for the Fort Bragg, N.C.,-based unit. It was the highest number of casualties for the division since the war began, Maj. Tom Earnhardt said.
Meanwhile, police in the same area said gunmen disguised as Iraqi soldiers killed six Iraqis and burned five homes Tuesday in an unrelated attack.
South of the capital, a family of seven was killed en masse -- shot to death in their beds at dawn by masked gunmen, neighbours and police said.
British forces transferred another military base to Iraqi troops in the country's south, ahead of the planned withdrawal this summer of about half of Britain's contribution to the U.S.-led coalition.
And in Baghdad, two bombs went off outside the Iranian Embassy on Tuesday for the second consecutive day. Six civilians were injured, police said.
Tension has risen over allegations by the U.S. and some Sunni politicians in Iraq about alleged Iranian interference in the country.
In its web posting Tuesday, the Islamic State of Iraq put the number of Americans killed in the bomb attack in Diyala province at 30.
"Almighty God has guided the soldiers of the Islamic State of Iraq to new methods of explosions,'' it said without elaborating. The message appeared on a website that frequently airs communications from insurgents.
It was single deadliest attack on ground forces since Dec. 1, 2005, when a roadside bomb killed 10 marines and wounded 11 on a foot patrol near Fallujah.
Twelve soldiers died when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Diyala on Jan. 20. The military said it might have been shot down but the investigation was still ongoing.
In other devastating attacks, 14 marines were killed when a roadside bomb struck an amphibious assault vehicle near the western town of Haditha on Aug. 3, 2005. And a suicide bomber struck a mess tent in a base near Mosul on Dec. 21, 2004, killing 22 people, including 14 U.S. soldiers and three American contractors.
It was the second bold attack against a U.S. base north of Baghdad in just over two months and was notable for its use of a suicide car bomber.
The insurgents have mostly used hit-and-run ambushes, roadside bombs or mortars on U.S. troops and stayed away from direct assaults on fortified military compounds to avoid U.S. firepower.
On Feb. 19, insurgents struck a U.S. combat post in Tarmiyah, about 50 kilometres north of Baghdad, killing two soldiers and wounding 17 in what the military called a "co-ordinated attack.'' It began with a suicide car bombing followed by gunfire on soldiers pinned down in a former Iraqi police station where fuel storage tanks were set ablaze by the blast.
American troops are facing increasing danger as they step up their presence in outposts and police stations in Baghdad and areas surrounding the city, as part of the security crackdown to which U.S. President George W. Bush has committed an extra 30,000 troops.
Sunni militants are believed to have withdrawn to surrounding areas such as Diyala where they have a relatively safe haven. The U.S. command also deployed an extra 700 soldiers to the province last month.
Another U.S. soldier was also killed Monday in a roadside bombing in Diyala, the military said -- bringing the daily American death toll to 10. A British soldier was also shot to death while on patrol in the southern city of Basra, officials said.
The deaths raised to 85 the number of U.S. service members who died have in Iraq in April, making it the deadliest month for American troops since December, when 112 died.
