Bomb threats sent by email to hundreds of schools in Italy, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland prompted mass evacuations on Wednesday, with thousands of pupils moved out of their classrooms. According to the Financial Times, authorities are examining whether the messages form part of a coordinated effort to cause disruption across Europe.
More than 300 schools affected in Italy
In Italy, more than 300 schools received emails claiming that explosive devices had been planted, leading to dozens of evacuations.
The threats reached schools in several cities, including Rome, Milan, Naples, Venice, Trieste, Padua, Bergamo and Modena, as well as areas of Tuscany.
In the Lazio region alone, more than 50 schools were evacuated, according to the student organisation Rete degli Studenti Medi.
Content of the threatening email
“We have come to exterminate you. We will carry out genocide against Italians,” the email reads. According to reports, it was sent from abroad and is signed by “Mikhail Andropov, leader of Vilayat Misoginistan”.
The same message also refers to a bomb being placed in the car of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Bomb disposal experts are carrying out checks at school buildings. According to the Italian news agency ANSA, dozens of school complexes have been evacuated.
Emergency meeting at Palazzo Chigi
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called an emergency meeting for 16:00 Italian time at Palazzo Chigi, the seat of government, to assess the situation and coordinate the necessary action.
The meeting was due to include Deputy Prime Ministers Matteo Salvini and Antonio Tajani, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, and the heads of the intelligence and cybersecurity services.
Mr Crosetto described the threats as a “strategy of spreading terror”. He added that some of them may have come from hoaxers, and not necessarily from foreign states or hostile organisations.
Government statements
In a social media post, Ms Meloni said the government was closely monitoring the numerous reports of bomb threats at schools, and that police and the relevant state authorities had been mobilised to investigate.
“The government is following with great attention the numerous reports of bomb alerts in schools. The police and the competent institutions, at all levels, have been mobilised to monitor the situation and reassure citizens, families and school staff,” Ms Meloni said.
She added: “At this moment, the checks carried out have produced no evidence indicating that there is a specific danger.” The prime minister said the reports may be linked to a strategy aimed at causing concern and disruption, and that all necessary investigations were under way.
Speaking from Brussels, Italian Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said that 312 schools had so far been affected by the threats.
“I want to send a reassuring message, because at this moment there is no danger. There is no reason for panic or any other concern, as that would be completely unjustified,” he said.
Investigation into the origin of the emails
Italian authorities are continuing their investigations to trace where the emails came from and to identify those behind the threats.
According to Reuters, similar threatening messages with the same signature had been sent in previous days to media outlets in Ireland and Bulgaria.
A similar incident took place in Italy in previous days, when a threatening email was sent to around 280 school principals. Authorities are also examining a possible link with threats made on 5 November against two flights bound for Rome’s Fiumicino Airport.
Threats to schools in Scotland and Ireland
According to the Financial Times, schools in Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland received similar threatening messages, and precautionary evacuations were also carried out there.
British authorities are treating the threats as possible hoaxes. Police Scotland said the messages had been sent in bulk to recipients throughout the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, and that, based on its assessment so far, they are not considered credible threats.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland confirmed it had received reports of a concerning email sent to several schools.
Northern Ireland’s Department of Education said that “another threatening email” had been sent to “a large number of schools”, but advised schools to remain open.
Wider pattern across Europe
The threats are the latest example of a growing wave of coordinated actions that appear aimed at sowing chaos across Europe.
Last week, bomb threats were sent to airlines across the continent, forcing some aircraft to make emergency landings and others to change course. European security services are trying to establish whether these threats may have originated in Russia.
This is a developing story.
