Russian extremist group denies sending hoax bomb threats

What the report says

An extremist online group known as “Male State” has denied any connection to a wave of hoax bomb threats that disrupted flights and other services across Europe, according to BBC World News. The denial came after the group was named in some of the false warnings, including emails sent to airport operators in Rome and reports of additional scares involving airlines on routes between major European cities.

BBC reported that several flights were diverted or met by security response measures, including a flight from Rome to Lisbon and another from Prague to Rome that was diverted to Venice. In Italy, one of the initial threats led to a plane being redirected to land in France, while another was escorted into Rome by fighter jets. No explosives were found on the aircraft mentioned in the reports, and the article says no bombs have been discovered so far in the wider spate of threats.

The messages examined by the BBC were written in Italian and claimed explosives had been placed on incoming flights as an attack on Italy’s “feminist regime.” The group linked to the threats is described by the BBC as misogynistic and extremist, and it has previously been banned in Russia. The article also notes that some threats to Irish media outlets prompted evacuations and a warning from the Irish government about a possible coordinated disruption campaign.

Officials in Italy have framed the episode as part of a broader pattern of hybrid or cyber-linked disruption affecting Europe, although the BBC says the source of the hoax campaign has not been established and may involve multiple actors or copycats.