Hoax bomb threats disrupt schools in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Italy
Thousands of schools in Scotland and Italy and hundreds in Northern Ireland received hoax bomb threat emails, prompting evacuations that authorities say posed no real danger.
Police in Scotland reported that around 1,000 schools from Dumfries to Aberdeenshire and Orkney received hoax bomb threat emails on Wednesday, while at least 300 schools in Northern Ireland were similarly affected. The Italian education ministry said an email targeting about 6,000 schools prompted evacuations at hundreds of sites.
Officials emphasized that the threats were not credible. A Police Scotland spokesperson stated, "Our inquiries have established that there is nothing to suggest that they represent a credible threat or that there is any wider threat to the public." The spokesperson added that there is no requirement to evacuate schools based solely on the emails.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, "No element has emerged that would suggest there is a concrete danger," and noted that the messages appear to be part of a strategy to generate alarm, which is under investigation.
Education authorities in Scotland and Northern Ireland instructed schools to resume classes after brief evacuations. Police Scotland’s cyber and fraud unit is working with UK and international law-enforcement agencies to identify the source of the threats.
Northern Ireland’s education minister previously described similar hoaxes as appearing to be "Islamist" and signed "Allahu Akbar," though no public confirmation of an Islamist motive has been made. The Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Garda Síochána in the Republic of Ireland both assessed the threats as not credible and did not order evacuations.
Headteachers’ association representative Antonello Giannelli called the episode "clearly fake" and warned that the misuse of modern communication tools can cause large-scale disruption.