Italy changed its response to mass bomb-threat emails, instructing schools to keep teaching unless there were specific grounds for alarm. New messages reached 3778 schools, but 77 were evacuated and 36 resumed teaching that morning. The revised criteria follow widespread disruption a day earlier, while investigators have not identified who organised the threats.
Italy instructed prefects and school leaders to keep teaching unless an assessment found specific grounds for alarm beyond the receipt of a mass email. The new criteria changed the response to bomb threats after widespread school disruption the previous day. Authorities continued assessing actual danger while limiting closures based solely on a message distributed to many institutions.[1], [2]
Government figures put the number of schools receiving threats on 12 November at 3778, with 77 evacuated. Provisional figures also showed that 36 of the evacuated schools resumed lessons during the same morning. The previous day's disruption had reached around 6300 of Italy's 7476 state schools, affecting pupils and families across the country. Searches had found no explosive devices.[1], [2]
Officials said the latest messages used a teacher's compromised email account in the Philippines, without establishing who organised the threats. Use of that account does not establish responsibility by the teacher or a state. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government is preparing sector-specific security instructions and response procedures for schools and other public services. A group previously linked to responsibility denied involvement in the threats.[1], [2]
