Iraq groups claim killing 3 Italians, 1 Romanian-Web

DUBAI, Apr 27 (Reuters) Two Iraqi militant groups said they were behind an attack that killed three Italian soldiers and a Romanian today, according to Internet statements.

''The Islamic Army in Iraq was able to destroy a vehicle belonging to the coalition forces by detonating a bomb, killing three Italian soldiers and one Romanian in the middle of Nassiriya,'' said the statement signed by the Islamic Army in Iraq.

Another Iraqi militant group, the Imam Hussein Brigades, later posted a Web statement claiming the same attack.

''A bomb was detonated on an Italian convoy and a vehicle was destroyed, and three Italians and a Romanian were killed in Nassiriya, southern Iraq,'' said the statement signed by Imam Hussein Brigades.

The authenticity of both statements, posted on a Web site often used by insurgents, could not be immediately verified.

Earlier the Italian Defence Ministry said three Italian soldiers and a Romanian soldier were killed when a roadside bomb ripped through their convoy on a road southwest of Nassiriya, a southern city where Italian forces in Iraq are based.

A fourth soldier was seriously wounded in the attack.

The Islamic Army in Iraq has claimed several kidnappings and attacks on foreign and Iraqi government forces. The Imam Hussein Brigades have claimed several attacks, including one last year on a British consulate convoy that killed two Britons working for a security firm.

Reuters PR GC2325