The car exploded as it careered into a crowd of cadets who had just been escorted out of a police academy in central Baghdad and were standing in the street.

The US-based SITE Intelligence Group said the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), an umbrella group for Al-Qaeda-linked Sunni insurgents, claimed responsibility for the incident in a statement posted on Islamist websites on Friday.

“The lion of Islam Sheikh Abu Ghassan Al-Ansari penetrated the gates of the academy with his explosives-laden vehicle ... and detonated his vehicle,” ISI was quoted by SITE as saying.

SITE said the group also listed 29 operations carried out around Baghdad between Feb. 13-29, which targeted Iraqi forces and officials.

ISI said on Thursday it was behind attacks in western Iraq on March 5 that killed 27 members of the security forces.

Bombings and killings occur daily in Iraq, which is still plagued by a lethal Sunni insurgency and Shiite militias, although overall violence has decreased since the height of sectarian fighting in 2006-07.