Hundreds of schools in Scotland and Northern Ireland were hit by a fresh wave of hoax bomb threats on Wednesday, with some sites evacuated as a precaution.
Police said at least 470 schools, from Dumfries in the south of Scotland to Aberdeenshire and Orkney in the north, had received the hoax warnings. At least 300 schools were affected in Northern Ireland. Similar claims were sent in a “generic communication” to schools in the Republic of Ireland.
Officials were quick to reassure schools and parents that the threats were bogus, and similar to hoax threats made last month.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “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.
“We understand how distressing messages of this nature can be for pupils, parents, carers and school staff, and the concern they can understandably cause. Our advice is that there is no requirement to evacuate schools or keep children away from education based solely on the content of the emails. They have been sent widely to distribution lists across the UK and Northern Ireland and our assessment remains that they do not represent a credible threat.”
Police Scotland’s cyber and fraud unit is liaising with security and law enforcement bodies in the UK and overseas to try to find who was responsible.
Northern Ireland’s education minister, Paul Givan, said last month’s hoaxes appeared to be “Islamist” and were signed “Allahu Akbar” – Arabic for “God is greater”. However, there was no public confirmation the threats were Islamist in origin.
Schools in Scotland were told to readmit any pupils who had been evacuated and to resume classes. Dumfries and Galloway council confirmed children had been sent home after a majority of schools received messages. Highland council confirmed some of its schools “made the decision to activate their emergency protocols”.
Glasgow council advised parents by email that the claims of devices planted in schools were false, saying: “Our police colleagues have confirmed that this is a hoax and that schools should not be evacuated.”
In Edinburgh, a council spokesperson confirmed schools were “briefly evacuated as a precaution this morning, following receipt of threatening messages”. They added: “[We] understand the impact this can have on families and want to reassure parents and carers that our schools are safe, and there is no need to remove your child.”
In Northern Ireland, education officials advised schools to remain open “unless otherwise advised” by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).
“As always, schools are advised to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the PSNI,” said a spokesperson for Northern Ireland’s education authority. “We fully appreciate that any message of this nature is distressing and can assure schools, parents/carers and children and young people that we will provide a further update following engagement with police.”
Anthony McNally, an assistant chief constable at the PSNI, offered further reassurance. “We take incidents of this nature very seriously and we understand the concern in the community, school communities and for students and parents. Our inquiries are ongoing. However, at this stage, we consider the risk to the public as low,” he said.
In Ireland, the Garda Síochána confirmed it had assessed the threat as “not credible” and had not called for any evacuations.
