Over 300 Schools Evacuated In Italy After Receiving B0mb Alerts, Northern Ireland Also Targeted
Over 300 Schools Evacuated In Italy After Receiving Bomb Alerts, Northern Ireland Also Targeted
The incident is the latest in a series of threats and cyberattacks on supermarkets, blood banks, air traffic and TV broadcasters across Europe.
At least 300 schools in Italy were evacuated on Wednesday after receiving a bomb alert message, the government has said.
The incident is the latest in a series of threats and cyberattacks on supermarkets, blood banks, air traffic and TV broadcasters across Europe.
Italian Education Minister, Giuseppe Valditara, told La7 TV channel that the alerts were presumed to be hoaxes, adding that the number of affected schools was expected to rise.
A large number of schools in Northern Ireland also received a threatening email, the Northern Ireland Education Authority said on Wednesday.
However, the schools were advised to stay open because police did not regard it as a credible threat.
“Following a nationwide bomb alert, we wish to inform you that all students have been taken to a safe area and remain under the supervision of teaching staff,” one school in Rome told parents through a messaging app.
The email received in Italy was signed “Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan,” according to a copy of the message seen by Reuters.
The same purported author claimed responsibility for email bomb threats sent on Friday to newsrooms in Ireland and Bulgaria.
Italian Defence Minister, Guido Crosetto, said the threats were “part of a strategy that is quite clear by now: to spread fear and create anxiety,” according to the Adnkronos news agency.
“It is not always the work of foreign countries or hostile entities. There are also attention-seekers and lunatics who, at a time like this, cannot wait to unleash terror in a city or a region,” he added.
Italian police forces are investigating the matter, a spokesperson for Rome police said.
Meanwhile, France on Tuesday summoned Iran’s ambassador after accusing Tehran of a cyberattack that disabled refrigerators in hundreds of supermarkets last week.
Iran’s foreign ministry rejected the accusation as “baseless and hostile,” saying its Revolutionary Guards were not behind the attacks.
European officials are also concerned that the hoax threats may be part of a campaign of “hybrid” disruptions aimed at countries helping Ukraine.
Many have blamed Russia for such disruptions, but Moscow has denied involvement.
