At least 300 schools in Italy evacuated due to bomb threats

BarcelonaThe chaos caused by bomb threats has spread to schools today. At least 300 centers in Italy have been evacuated after all received the same warning message, as reported by the Minister of Education. According to the BBC, there have also been threats to a large number of schools in Northern Ireland.

Italian Minister of Education, Giuseppe Valditara, told the television channel La7 that these are presumably false alarms. He argued that the large number of affected schools "demonstrates the lack of credibility of the threat". Nevertheless, he assured that "all students have been moved to a safe area and remain under the supervision of the teaching staff". Italian police forces are investigating the matter, as stated by a spokesperson for the Rome police.

In Northern Ireland, education authorities have also reported that a large number of schools received a threatening email, but they have been advised to remain open, as the police do not consider it a credible threat. "The message has similarities to a hoax threat sent last month, which the PSNI (police) declared a prank," said the Education Authority.

This new security alert comes after a wave of bomb threats last week that affected dozens of airplanes and also some media outlets in various countries across Europe.

The email received by schools in Italy is signed by "Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan", according to a copy of the message seen by the Reuters agency. The same alleged perpetrator claimed responsibility for the bomb threats sent by email on Friday to newsrooms in Ireland and Bulgaria.