Staff Report
Hundreds of schools across Italy were evacuated on Wednesday after receiving an anonymous email warning of bombs planted in the buildings. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called an emergency government meeting to coordinate the response and reassure families.
Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said around 300 schools had received the threatening message by mid-morning, and the number was expected to rise. The email, which carried the subject line “Avviso di pericolo” and was signed by a sender calling himself Mikhail Andropov, claimed a powerful remote-controlled explosive device had been hidden inside a plastic bag.
A coordinated wave of threats
The message was not isolated. Similar threats have recently targeted flights, supermarkets, hospitals, and television companies across Europe, suggesting a broader campaign intended to sow panic rather than cause physical harm. Italian officials said the same signature had appeared in previous hoaxes.
Police and bomb disposal units carried out precautionary checks from Turin to Naples, from Milan to Venice. In many cases students were sent home or gathered in courtyards while officers searched classrooms. By early afternoon some schools, including several in Puglia and Bologna, had been cleared and students returned to lessons.
Government seeks to calm fears
Meloni said that, based on checks so far, no concrete danger had emerged. She described the threats as a strategy to generate alarm and worry, and said all necessary investigations were underway. Her office announced that she would chair a meeting at Palazzo Chigi with intelligence chiefs, the cyber security agency, and senior ministers including Matteo Salvini, Antonio Tajani, Matteo Piantedosi, and Guido Crosetto.
Interior Minister Piantedosi warned against premature conclusions about a single mastermind, saying investigators would have to determine whether the threats were coordinated or copycat attacks. Defense Minister Crosetto called the messages part of a strategy of terror but also noted that attention seekers could be involved.
Investigators trace the sender
The email was sent from an address linked to a Taiwanese university domain, according to Italian media reports. Prosecutors in Genoa have opened a terrorism investigation. Cyber security experts and postal police are working to trace the origin of the message and determine whether it was sent from abroad or routed through overseas servers to hide its true source.
Schools and parents left unsettled
Despite official reassurances that the risk was virtually nonexistent, the disruption was significant. More than 50 schools in the Lazio region alone were affected, and thousands of students spent part of the morning outside classrooms. Student representatives said it was unacceptable that a single email could spread panic across the country.
The episode has renewed debate about school security and the resources needed to defend public institutions against low-cost digital threats. Valditara said the government would develop a clear strategy after Wednesday's meeting and stressed that investments in security were essential.
