Hoax Bomb Emails Hit 300 Italian Schools and Over 300 in Northern Ireland

Emailed bomb threats hit hundreds of schools in Italy, Northern Ireland and Scotland on Wednesday, and authorities in each place say they are treating the messages as hoaxes. Italian officials said some 300 schools received threats, according to the BBC, and a number of buildings were evacuated as a precaution. Police Service of Northern Ireland said more than 300 schools there reported a concerning email, as reported by The Independent.

It is unclear whether the incidents are connected, the BBC reported.

What happened in Italy?

Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said some 300 schools received bomb threats, according to the BBC. The emails went to schools in Rome, Naples, Vicenza, Florence, Pisa, Trieste and many other Italian cities. Italian reports said 280 school head teachers had received threats in recent days.

ABC News reported that Italian authorities evacuated around 300 schools after an emailed threat. The BBC reported that many schools were initially evacuated, but that the alarm was quickly lifted in a number of regions and pupils were allowed back to class. Stefania Proietti, head of the central Umbria region, said checks in Umbrian schools so far had proved negative.

At Rome's Mamiani high school, students poured into the street because they thought the alarm was the recess bell, ABC News reported, and learned of the threat only once they were outside.

What did the Italian government say?

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said checks so far had not indicated any evidence of concrete danger. She wrote on Facebook that the reports appeared linked to a strategy meant to cause alarm and concern. The BBC reported that she called a meeting of top ministers and intelligence chiefs.

Valditara told Italian television there was a clear strategy behind the wave of threats in Italy and elsewhere, and described the incidents as probably a cyber-attack rather than a genuine risk, according to the BBC.

ABC News reported that the anonymous email also contained a threat against Meloni, citing copies obtained by Italian media. She did not address the personal threat in her statement.

What is happening in the UK?

The Independent reported that hundreds of schools in Scotland and Northern Ireland were targeted by hoax threats. Police Scotland said the messages were sent widely to distribution lists and that nothing suggested a credible threat or any danger to the public. Reports said dozens of schools evacuated.

Police Scotland advised that there is no need to evacuate schools or keep children home based solely on the content of the emails. Its Cyber and Fraud Unit is working to establish the source, with help from law enforcement partners across the UK and internationally.

In Northern Ireland, Assistant Chief Constable Anthony McNally urged people to be vigilant and to report anything suspicious. The Education Authority said the message had similarities with a bogus threat last month that police declared a hoax, and that it had seen no evidence of a credible threat to schools.

Why does it matter for families?

For parents and pupils, the main effect so far has been disruption and worry rather than danger. Police Scotland acknowledged how distressing such messages can be for pupils, parents, carers and school staff. Glasgow City Council said it knows these incidents cause anxiety, while stressing that the safety of children and staff is its top priority.

The Highland Council said emergency protocols were activated in its schools while it awaited police guidance, and that schools would contact parents directly about any precautionary measures.

The threats also arrive amid a string of hoaxes across Europe in recent weeks. The Independent reported that they have targeted supermarkets, air traffic, broadcasters and blood banks. The BBC reported that airports and airlines were hit by bomb hoaxes last week, and that although an extremist misogynistic group claimed a number of them, it later denied any link.

What happens next?

Investigators in Italy, Scotland and Northern Ireland are working to trace the messages. Police Service of Northern Ireland said it is making urgent enquiries and liaising with the schools targeted. Meloni said investigations are underway. Italian authorities have not said who is behind the emails.

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Around Prague, based on reporting by The Independent, BBC News, ABC News

Cover photo: Dave Bevis / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0, cropped