{
  "id": 19508701,
  "title": "Hoax bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy, UK and Ireland",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/hoax-bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-uk-and-ireland-19508701",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-11T14:07:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/world/2026/11/11/hoax-bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-uk-and-ireland"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that authorities are monitoring the situation, declaring the bomb threats in schools across the country as harmless. On Wednesday, around 6,300 Italian schools received bomb warnings, part of a series of cyberattacks targeting various European targets including supermarkets, blood banks, air traffic control, and broadcasters. Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Ireland reported similar email threats to their schools, but these were deemed hoaxes and did not disrupt classes. In Italy, schools promptly closed following the warnings, causing distress and confusion among parents and students.\n\nOne parent, Nensi Bego, recounted her daughter Dafne's distress as they picked her up from Mazzini middle school in Rome. The message included a threat against Prime Minister Meloni, but Meloni assured the public that the bomb alerts posed no danger and that police and other public bodies were monitoring the situation. All students have been relocated to a secure area and remain under the supervision of teaching staff.\n\nNational security sources claim that sending the bomb alert messages was as simple as drinking a glass of water. The purported author behind the emails signed them with the name Mikhail Andropov, leader of the Vilayat of Misoginistan. A national security source told Reuters that the act was \"as easy as drinking a glass of water.\"\n\nEuropean officials suspect potential involvement from Russia, Russia and Iran deny these accusations, with Russia accusing the West of smear campaigns and Iran dismissing the allegations as \"baseless and hostile.\" Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto stated that the threats were part of a deliberate strategy to spread fear and anxiety, emphasizing that such incidents, though hoaxes, can have significant consequences for school communities and education. Antonello Giannelli, head of the Italian School Principals Association, echoed these concerns, stressing the unsettling impact of the alerts on students, families, and school staff.",
  "summary": "Thousands of schools in Italy closed swiftly after the warnings, prompting many parents to drop what they were doing to collect their children.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 9,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "France 24",
        "title": "🔴Italy: At least 300 schools evacuated after email bomb alerts",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/italy-at-least-300-schools-evacuated-after-email-bomb-alerts",
        "published": "2026-11-11T10:59:06.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Hindustan Times - World News",
        "title": "Bomb threat emails trigger evacuation of 300 schools across Italy",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/bomb-threat-emails-trigger-evacuation-of-300-schools-across-italy",
        "published": "2026-11-11T11:44:45.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "New Straits Times",
        "title": "Schools evacuated across Italy after bomb threats",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/schools-evacuated-across-italy-after-bomb-threats",
        "published": "2026-11-11T11:57:32.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "Bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy and Northern Ireland in latest threats",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-and-northern-ireland-in-latest",
        "published": "2026-11-11T11:59:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy and Northern Ireland in latest threats",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-and-northern-ireland-in-latest-19494343",
        "published": "2026-11-11T12:37:02.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Dawn",
        "title": "Hoax bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy, UK, Ireland in latest disruption",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/hoax-bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-uk-ireland-in-latest",
        "published": "2026-11-11T13:14:30.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Indian Express",
        "title": "Italy evacuates over 300 schools after bomb threats; similar alerts reported in UK, Ireland",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/italy-evacuates-over-300-schools-after-bomb-threats-similar-alerts",
        "published": "2026-11-11T13:49:17.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "ABC News AU",
        "title": "Hoax bomb alerts sent to schools in Italy, UK and Ireland",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/hoax-bomb-alerts-sent-to-schools-in-italy-uk-and-ireland-19510404",
        "published": "2026-11-11T15:05:51.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}