A militant group issued fresh threats against Italy on Tuesday and demanded that Italy withdraw its troops from Iraq, Italian media reported.

The threats, by the group calling itself Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, were contained in a message on a Web site claiming responsibility for Tuesday's early morning bomb attacks in Turkey.

The group, which had issued several similar threats against Italy, claimed responsibility for the bomb attacks, in which two people were killed, and 11 others injured.

"The bitterness which Muslims in Iraq and Palestine are experiencing will be felt by those who live in Europe, Istanbul, Rome and the other countries which are following the policies of the United States (in Iraq)," the group said in the statement.

Italy now has some 3,000 troops serving in Iraq, mainly as part of a British-led multinational stabilization force in the southern part of the Iraq.

(Xinhua News Agency August 11, 2004)