Newsrooms in Ireland and Bulgaria received bomb threats via email on Friday, attributed to a sender identified as “Mikhail Andropov.” These threats disrupted operations at the Irish broadcasting company RTE and Bulgaria’s Nova TV, both of which evacuated their offices and suspended programming. The emails, which were titled “Message to the West,” suggested a series of impending attacks targeting transportation across Europe. The British broadcaster Sky also reported receiving a security threat.
Authorities, including law enforcement agencies, have not confirmed the identity of the sender or connected these threats to a larger series of disruptive incidents affecting European air travel this week. Reuters noted that many flights were reportedly impacted by similar hoaxes since Tuesday, but the precise origins of the email threats remain unclear.
European officials expressed growing concern that these incidents are part of a broader campaign of “hybrid” disruptions linked to geopolitical tensions surrounding Ukraine. Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares described the situation as indicative of “hybrid aggression and a form of psychological warfare.”
Despite the threats, no explosives were found, and all flights landed safely, although there were several disruptions throughout the week. On Tuesday, six flights were affected, and over two dozen were disrupted on Thursday, some requiring unplanned landings or military escorts. An Italian airport authority noted that a Wizz Air flight was diverted to Venice on Friday amid the threats, but overall air travel experienced reduced disruption by that time.
The presence of military escorts was confirmed for multiple flights, with Hungarian jets accompanying airliners from Brussels to Sofia and Prague to Bucharest and Cyprus. Hungarian Defense Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi revealed that NATO had ordered air patrols in the region, marking the first indication of the alliance’s involvement.
The recent threats coincide with a series of sabotage attacks across Europe, from incidents affecting German electricity substations to cyberattacks on supermarket facilities in France. While no country has explicitly blamed Russia for the bomb threats, various European officials have condemned the nation for orchestrating similar hybrid operations. EU technology commissioner Henna Virkkunen highlighted that Europe has been subjected to an array of hybrid tactics since 2022, which aim to destabilize societies and undermine public trust.
In related developments, bomb threats reportedly targeting airlines and airports in Rome and Milan claimed to originate from purported members of a far-right anti-feminist group. However, the authenticity of these claims was unverified, as the group’s founder distanced himself from any involvement.
