Thousands of schools evacuated in Italy as bomb threats spread across Europe

Crowds of pupils wait outside their schools across Italy after hundreds simultaneously received bomb alerts Wednesday. Teachers took the threat seriously and classrooms from Naples to Rome were swiftly evacuated. The principal came and told us that an email had come in, a bomb threat, and right after that the building was evacuated and then the police were called, but they still haven't arrived because there's a long waiting list with all the schools. The particularly violent threats came in an email from an otherwise unknown group with With a misogynistic name. Its purported leader signed with the same Russian name used in threats made last week against European broadcasters. La Baura Shed. There is definitely concern, especially when it comes to the children, because we're responsible for all of them. So we acted immediately. Police sweeps revealed no suspicious items, but the education minister said investigations were ongoing. Obviously, at this stage, it could be anything. They could be pathological liars or it could be part of a strategy. Certainly, the frequency and the variety of incidents, as we've seen, don't just involve schools but also public transportation and other settings. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said there was no indication of any concrete danger to schools and that the threats appeared aimed at generating alarm and concern. False bomb threats are relatively common, but so many in such a short period are unusual and follow other disruptions across Europe, including attacks on supermarket refrigeration systems and drone incursions, some of which have been blamed on Russia or Iran.