Al-Qaida claimed on Monday that it was behind the failed Christmas Day bombing of a U.S.-bound plane, Dubai-based al-Arabiya news channel reported.

This picture shows Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on the runway after arriving at Detroit Metropolitan Airport from Amsterdam on Friday, Dec. 25, 2009. A passenger aboard the plane set off firecrackers Friday, causing a commotion and some minor injuries, a Delta official said.[Xinhua]

In a statement, al-Qaida said that the "Nigerian brother," referring to the Nigerian suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, had broken all U.S. security barriers, and smashed the myth of U.S. intelligence, said the report.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, was charged with trying to blow up a Delta/Northwest flight flying from Amsterdam to Detroit with 289 people on board on Dec. 25.

The man had tried to destroy the plane with a "high explosive" obtained from al-Qaida, but failed due to a "technical fault", the report quoted al-Qaida as saying.

Earlier, the Nigerian attacker had claimed that he has ties with al-Qaida, the terrorist group that took responsibilities with the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

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