African al-Qaida group claims responsibility for deadly attack

AL-QAIDA’S north African affiliate claimed responsibility yesterday for a car bombing in Algeria that killed 30 coast guard officers and another recent blast that ripped through a crowd waiting for the president.

In Saturday’s blast, explosives planted in a van ripped through barracks in the northern coastal town of Dellys, about 50km from the capital Algiers. The bombing appeared timed to kill as many officers as possible when they were grouped together to raise the flag.

Al-Qaida in Islamic North Africa claimed responsibility in a statement posted on the group’s website.