Russia likely behind bomb hoaxes that grounded flights, say European intelligence

European security officials are investigating whether the series of bomb threats against European airlines and news organisations originated in Russia. Sky said it received a security threat amid a wide range of hoax threats disrupting passenger flights across Europe this week. Newsrooms in Ireland and Bulgaria also received emailed bomb threats on Friday from a purported “Mikhail Andropov”, who claimed responsibility for the hoax threats seen across the continent this week.Irish public broadcaster RTE was forced to evacuate its offices and suspend programming after receiving the threat.Bulgaria’s Nova TV was also a recipient. The messages were headlined “Message to the West” and portrayed the threats as the prelude to a series of attacks on means of transport across Europe.Flights were disrupted this week after a wide range of hoax threats were made (AFP/Getty)European intelligence services have proposed that the co-ordinated threats were produced by pro-Kremlin activists or hacking groups, the Financial Times reported. However, it is not clear what role - if any - Russian intelligence services may have played in the cyber-attack. Many European officials have accused Russia of a campaign of “hybrid” or “grey zone” disruptions that are essentially cheap to execute, easy ‌to deny and not expected to trigger an armed response.European technology commissioner Henna Virkkunen told Reuters on Thursday that since 2022 Europe had faced a range of hybrid operations including sabotage of critical infrastructure, drone incursions, cyber breaches and election interference. “We are under attack all the time,” she said. “The reason behind ⁠these operations is to destabilise our societies and create mistrust among our citizens.”“It is not always Russia who is behind different hybrid operations,” she said, before adding: “Quite often it is Russia.”Security experts stated on Thursday that the threats might be intended to penalise European nations that have supplied arms or funding to Ukraine as it resists the full-scale invasion launched by Russia in 2022.It remained possible, however, that individuals were creating false trails, issuing copycat threats, or simply acting on personal grievances.European security officials are investigating the bomb threats that grounded flights (AFP/Getty)On Thursday, an airport source in Italy said bomb threats had been sent to several airlines and airport operators in ‌Rome and Milan purporting to be from “fighters ​of the Male State”, a far-right anti-feminist movement banned in Russia.Reuters ‌could not confirm who had sent the email. Vladislav Pozdnyakov, a ​Russian blogger who set up Male State in 2016, said it no longer existed and was not involved in any way.Around half a dozen flights suffered disruption in some way on Tuesday, followed by more than two dozen on Thursday, with several planes making unexpected landings or receiving fighter jet escorts to their destinations.On Friday, an Italian airport authority source reported that a Wizz Air flight travelling from Prague to Rome had been diverted to Venice. Despite more than a dozen hoax threats, direct disruption to air travel was far lower overall.