Hundreds of Italian Schools Evacuated Over Mass Hoax Bomb Threats

Crime · First reported 11 Nov, 10:58 · Updated 11:13

Image: Wikimedia Commons · Ysherazi · CC BY-SA 4.0

More than 300 schools across Italy were evacuated after thousands of institutions received identical threatening emails claiming bombs had been planted in buildings and in the car of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Italian officials emphasized that there was no concrete danger, viewing the alerts as a strategy to sow panic, while similar hoax messages were reported in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Ireland.

Over 300 schools across Italy were evacuated after roughly 6,000 schools received identical bomb threats by email claiming explosives were planted in buildings.
The emails, signed under the name 'Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan', also claimed an explosive had been placed in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's car.
Prime Minister Meloni and Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara stated there was no concrete danger and assessed the mass messages as hoaxes or cyberattacks aimed at causing panic.
Police forces in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Ireland reported similar threatening communications sent to educational institutions but deemed them non-credible hoaxes.
The incident followed broader European security alerts involving flight disruptions and cyberattacks on cold storage facilities and supermarket refrigeration.

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Key facts

Italian schools evacuated: More than 300
Italian schools receiving threat emails: Around 6,000 to 6,300
Alleged sender pseudonym: Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan
High-level individual targeted: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
Other regions reporting similar threats: Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Ireland