A wave of hoax bomb threats caused serious chaos across Europe on Wednesday. In Italy alone, more than 300 schools had to be evacuated, forcing panicked parents to rush to school gates to pick up their children.
Similar threatening emails were received by schools in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. However, authorities there quickly treated the messages as hoaxes and classes continued without interruption.
Panic in Rome and Mysterious Sender
In Rome, one school sent messages to parents reassuring them that students had been moved to a safe area under teacher supervision.
The threatening email sent to Italian schools was reportedly signed by 'Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan'. The very same sender had previously claimed responsibility for bomb threats emailed to newsrooms in Ireland and Bulgaria on Friday.
“My daughter Dafne started crying because the kids did not understand what was happening, and she was still shaken when I picked her up,”Nensi Bego, parent of a child at the Mazzini middle school in Rome
Growing Disruptions and Suspicions
This latest incident comes on the heels of several disruptions and cyberattacks targeting European supermarkets, blood banks, air traffic and television broadcasters.
Some European officials suspect Russia could be attempting to cause disruption because of European backing for Ukraine, though Russia denies this completely. Iran has also faced allegations over recent cyberattacks in France, which it rejected as baseless.
