Defense Secretary Gates arrives in Iraq

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew to Iraq on Thursday to begin the second leg of his tour of two major war zones.

Gates' visit to Iraq comes during a week in which coordinated Baghdad bombings have killed 127 people and wounded more than 500. Al-Qaida's umbrella group in Iraq claimed responsibility Thursday for the bombings and warned of more strikes to come against the Iraqi government.

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell called the bombings "heinous" and said they were a sign of …