Hoax bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy, UK and Ireland in latest disruption

Detailed summary

By Alvise Armellini and Giuseppe FonteROME, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Schools across Italy were evacuated on Wednesday after around 6,300 of them received bomb warnings, the latest in a series of threats and cyberattacks around Europe againstsupermarkets, blood banks, air traffic and broadcasters.Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland said many of their schools received a similar email threat from abroad…

ROME, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Schools across Italy were evacuated on Wednesday after around 6,300 of them received bomb warnings, the latest in a series of threats and cyberattacks around Europe againstsupermarkets, blood banks, air traffic and broadcasters.

Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland said many of their schools received a similar email threat from abroad but it was classed as a hoax and did not disrupt classes.

In Italy, schools closed swiftly after the warnings, prompting many parents to drop what they were doing to collect children.

"My daughter Dafne started crying because the kids did not understand what was happening, and she was still shaken when I picked her up," said Nensi Bego, parent of a child at the Mazzini middle school in Rome.

"This is so annoying. It's obvious it's just a hoax that disrupts lessons and disrupts everyone's day."

A copy of the message seen by Reuters also included a threat to target Prime MinisterGiorgia Meloni. She said the bomb alerts posed no danger and that police and other public bodies were monitoring the situation.

"All students have been taken to a safe area and remain under the supervision of teaching staff," one school in Rome informed 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 (school) emails are public. (Sending the bomb alert messages) was as easy as drinking a glass of water,” a national security source told Reuters.

Opening of the article, excerpted from Al-Monitor. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.