Al-Qaida-linked group making own rockets

A TOP insurgent leader boasted that his al-Qaida-linked group was making its own rockets, while Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki said his government was talking with militant groups to try to stop the violence.

The voice on an audiotape was said to be that of Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, head of the Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group that includes al-Qaida in Iraq. The tape was posted on an Islamic website used by militant groups, but its authenticity could not be confirmed.

The rockets — called al-Quds-1, or Jerusalem-1 — “have moved into the phase of military production with an advanced degree of range and accuracy”, al-Baghdadi said.