Bomb threats force evacuations at more than 300 Italian schools

A threatening email sent to schools across Italy triggered widespread evacuations on Wednesday, November 11. Fanpage reported that the message arrived in institutional inboxes shortly before 10am, with schools in Rome and Milan among those affected.

ANSA described the email as anonymous. According to Il Post, the sender signed the name Mikhail Andropov and threatened a "genocide against Italians". That signature does not establish who sent it.

The alerts followed a similar episode in the preceding days, when an email was sent to 280 school heads, according to ANSA. The available reporting does not establish whether the same person or group was responsible.

On November 11, schools evacuated students and staff after the new threats arrived. ANSA put the number of affected schools at more than 300, while DIE ZEIT reported at least 300 evacuations, citing Italy's education minister.

The disruption extended beyond Italy. Hereford Times reported that police were conducting "urgent inquiries" after a threatening email reached hundreds of schools across Northern Ireland. The Education Authority said the message had similarities to a hoax threat.

In Ireland, some schools in counties Dublin, Wicklow and Cork were evacuated as Gardaí investigated a series of bomb threats, The Irish Times reported. GB News also reported evacuations in Scotland.

Fanpage reported that Meloni described the Italian alerts as a strategy to create alarm. A meeting at Chigi was scheduled for 4pm.

Italy's education minister said pupils were safe, according to DIE ZEIT. The available coverage does not give a complete account of school reopenings or when lessons could resume.

Vg described the Italian threats as reportedly a false alarm, while CNBC characterised the wider wave as hoax bomb threats. Those reports do not identify the sender. The Financial Times described the incidents as an apparent coordinated attack intended to disrupt life in Europe, but a common source is not established in the supplied coverage.

The immediate questions are who sent the emails and whether the Italian threats are connected to those elsewhere in Europe. The scheduled Chigi meeting is another point to watch: Fanpage reported its timing, but the supplied coverage contains no account of its outcome.